Social Vulnerability, Age, and Coronavirus

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Social Vulnerability Index helps emergency response planners and public health officials identify and map the communities that will most likely need support before, during, and after a hazardous event.

Given the drastic rise in the #COVIDー19 mortality rate after age 60, US counties with a higher proportion of an older population may experience a disproportionate demand for medical care due to the Coronavirus outbreak. The American Community Survey age-based estimates of population may highlight areas of punctuated need.

There are two counties with a Social Vulnerability Index (specifically, the socio-economic index) of 0.75 (ranging from 0, as most secure and 1, as most vulnerable), and more than a third of the population aged 60+, and having a total population of at least 100,000.

Mohave County, Arizona (just east of Las Vegas, home to Lake Havasu City), and Highlands County, Florida (home to Sebring).

Here is a map showing just the age data. Large symbols represent counties with a large proportion of the population aged 60+. The top 20 have been labeled.

…UPDATE…

I’ve gotten updated CDC Social Vulnerability data for 2016 and aged 60+ population estimates for 2019 and created a StoryMap walking through the intersection of the two…

Highlands County, Florida, has a total population of 105,069, of whom 43% are aged 60+. Their CDC Social Vulnerability Index is .85.

Marion County, Florida, has a total population of 368,463, of whom 38% are aged 60+. Their CDC Social Vulnerability Index is .77.

Mohave County, Arizona, has a total population of 215,440, of whom 37% are aged 60+. Their CDC Social Vulnerability Index is .91.

Douglas County, Oregon, has a total population of 114,656, of whom 34% are aged 60+. Their CDC Social Vulnerability Index is .75.

In these days of planning and contingencies, it is especially important to consider the most vulnerable among us. Visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s resources regarding Coronavirus disease, and consider what you can do for your family, neighbors, and community. In many cases this may be avoiding physical contact, but it certainly does not exclude emotional or communicative support. Ensure that those you love, and maybe even those you don’t, who are at particular risk have adequate resources and access to potential medical support.

If you are interested in learning more about the CDC’s Social Vulnerability Index, visit this resource for background information and access it in a geographic format at many levels of detail, here, at the ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World. Additionally, find resources for mapping and understanding the geography of this outbreak at this dedicated ArcGIS Hub.

Be well and do good, John