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Dr. Colleen Bridger, Director of the Orange County Health Department, says they were not surprised to be ranked at the top of the scale for county-by-county health. “The health of a community is essentially determined by two things,” she says. “One is how well educated the community is. And two is how wealthy the community is. “Folks who follow Orange County statistics understand that, pretty typically, Orange County leads the state in both of those categories.” While Orange County is well positioned, it also is an area that sees higher disparity between residents. And that can play a big role on the health of different segments of the community. “One of the indicators in these rankings is what they call income inequality,” Bridger says. “Orange County’s income inequality was higher than average. “Basically, what that means is we have a lot of people at the top of the income scale, and we have a lot of people at the bottom of the income scale.” To battle income inequality, Bridger credits programs including the Family Success Alliancefor helping children in low-income families succeed through high school and beyond. Other obstacles that present themselves for Orange County include affordable housing – which Bridger says can lead to difficult decisions for residents. She adds she has been surprised binge drinking for adults was higher in our area when compared with national rates. Bridger says there were plenty of highlights for Orange County to be proud of, including limited tobacco use. “12 percent of our population uses tobacco, and that’s one of the best percentages in the entire nation,” she says. She adds other areas where Orange County excels include teen birth rate and increased use and availability of healthcare services. You can see the full rankings here.