SPOKANE, Wash. — A study from Washington State University’s Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine shows that mortality rates in 10 out of 11 of Washington’s leading causes of death are higher in eastern Washington counties than in western Washington.
Researchers used age-adjusted mortality rates from the 2000 U.S. Census and registered deaths for the years 2011 to 2015 from the Washington State Department of Health to compile the data.
"We want to find out what's wrong or what's going on in our communities and how do we fix those issues," Associate Dean of the College of Medicine Jonathan Espenschied said.
The report also includes an interactive heat map detailing mortality rates in every Washington county.
The study found that eastern Washington counties suffer from higher rates of cancer, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, unintentional injuries, chronic lower respiratory disease, stroke, diabetes, suicide, chronic liver disease and flu. Overdose was the only cause of death that was higher on the west side.
Mortality rates for six out of 10 of the leading causes of death were higher in eastern Washington compared to average rates in the United States, according to the study.
Potentially preventable causes of death, such as unintentional injuries, chronic lower respiratory diseases and diabetes, were also higher in eastern Washington compared to the west side and United States average rates, according to the study.
Eastern Washington is comprised of 20 counties east of the Cascade Mountains, including Adams, Asotin, Benton, Chelan, Columbia, Douglas, Ferry, Franklin, Garfield, Grant, Kittitas, Klickitat, Lincoln, Okanogan, Pend Oreille, Spokane, Stevens, Walla Walla, Whitman and Yakima Counties.
The total population of eastern Washington was 1,538,239 in 2015, according to U.S. Census data. This is compared to a population of 6,985,464 in the state.
According to the WSU study, nearly 18 percent of the population lived below the poverty level in eastern Washington compared to 12 percent in western Washington.
Fifteen percent of eastern Washington’s population lived in rural areas while only two percent of western Washington’s lived in small towns and rural areas.
Researchers plan to publish future reports exploring the causes behind those health disparities, including poverty, rurality and access to healthcare.