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Five WNY counties rank among least healthy in NYS

Posted at 12:54 PM, Mar 29, 2017
and last updated 2017-03-29 12:54:15-04

An upstate county that's home to a thriving tourism and entertainment destination tops an organization's annual county health rankings for New York state.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation collaborates with the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute to publish the information online at countyhealthrankings.org. The rankings are designed to help counties gauge the overall health of residents.

Five counties in western New York rank among among the bottom 15 on the list. Those counties include Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Niagara, Orleans and Erie.

Saratoga County tops the 2017 rankings for New York. The county is home to the city of Saratoga Springs, a popular tourist destination. Putnam County just north of New York City ranks No. 2. Nassau County on Long Island and neighboring Westchester and Putnam County round out the Top 5.

Ranking No. 62 and last is the Bronx.

The rankings are based on such factors as high school graduation rates, access to healthy foods and rates of obesity.