Queens residents living longer, healthier

More than ever New Yorkers are living up to the phrase, “Live long and prosper.”
New Yorker’s average life spans are at an all-time high, while deaths per 1,000 residents have fallen to all-time lows, according to the city’s Health Department’s recently released Annual Summary of Vital Statistics. Both surpass national averages.
“New Yorkers are living longer, healthier lives than ever before,” said Dr. Thomas Farley, New York City Health Commissioner.
The citywide death rate fell to 6.3 per 1,000 residents in 2009, the most recent year the data is available. There were less overall deaths than the year prior despite a larger population. Since the turn of the century there have been 8,000 less deaths despite more than 300,000 more people within the city.
The leading causes of death across the city are still cancer and heart disease. These account for 63 percent of deaths in the five boroughs.
Despite the fact that New Yorkers are as healthy as ever, 30 percent of deaths within the city were of citizens under 65, many of these being highly preventable.
The city is looking to reduce these deaths through their 10-point plan, Take Care New York. The city has set goals they hope to reach by 2012 that will eliminate these “premature” deaths. Launched in 2004, it has been able to lower the three leading causes of death of residents under 65, cancer, heart disease and HIV.
Queens had the lowest death rate of the five boroughs, along with the district, Elmhurst/Corona, with the fewest deaths per 1,000, and Bayside enjoyed the lowest age-adjusted death rate. Jackson Heights also had the third lowest death rate within the city.
While Queens did very well compared to the city averages, not all districts followed suit. The Rockaways district had the third most deaths per 1,000 in the five boroughs.
There are still great disparities between races, income and neighborhoods. Lower income neighborhoods are still saddled with some of the highest death rates. Bedford-Stuyvesant, Coney Island, the Rockaways and East Harlem are the districts with the highest death rates.
“Unfortunately, this has been a longstanding issue,” said assistant commissioner for vital statistics Elizabeth Begier of higher rates of death in lower income areas.
To try and battle these issues the city has opened three District Public Health Offices in high-need areas. These offices try to identify issues, develop health programs and educate local residents on health issues to help close the health disparity between communities.
The numbers this year follow a trend happening across the city of longer, healthier lives.
“We have made gains for the last decade or so and we are hopeful we can continue to,” said Begier.