Chronic Disease Burden
and Health Drivers

Chronic disease rates in Central Michigan’s rural counties run higher than the state average, and many of the reasons start well before a doctor’s visit. This dashboard from the Michigan Health Improvement Alliance (MiHIA) brings together county-level data on chronic disease, food access, physician access, and transportation for the 10 counties served by the Central Michigan Regional Care Collaborative: Allegan, Arenac, Barry, Bay, Gratiot, Midland, Montcalm, Osceola, Saginaw, and Shiawassee.

Use the menu on the left side of the dashboard to move between Chronic Disease Indicators, Access to Food, Access to Physicians, and Transportation Access. Hover over any chart to see county values.

This dashboard is the first release of a shared data resource for the Central Michigan Regional Care Collaborative. As more partners join MiHIA in this work, the dashboard will expand with additional local data, new indicators, and embedded insights from organizations across the 10-county region. Check back as it grows, or contact MiHIA if your organization has data to contribute.

37.5% of adults in the region have high blood pressure, compared with 36.5% statewide, and 12.6% have diabetes, compared with 12% across Michigan. COPD (9.2% vs. 8.3%) and coronary heart disease (7.6% vs. 6.9%) also run above the state rate.

66% of people in the region live a mile or more from a source of healthy food, compared with 46.4% statewide. Distance matters most for people managing diabetes and blood pressure, where diet is part of the treatment plan.

Michigan averages 631 residents for each primary care doctor. In Barry County that number is 2,348, and in Allegan County it is 2,024.

87.3% of commuters in the region drive alone, and public transit carries 0.3%. A 30-minute transit trip reaches about 1,018 jobs on average here, compared with about 3,407 statewide. For the 5.5% of households without a vehicle, reaching a clinic or grocery store can be the hardest step.

Each section of the dashboard compares every county with the regional total and with Michigan. You can download the underlying data or a PDF of any page from within the dashboard.

Sources include CDC BRFSS PLACES, the USDA Economic Research Service Food Access Research Atlas, Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap, the NPPES National Provider Identifier registry, HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas, and the EPA National Walkability Index.

Funded by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services through the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services’ Rural Health Transformation Program.