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Summit County health official says county ranks near top in Utah; urges residents to take community health survey
Summary
Deputy Health Director Kendra Babitz told the Summit County Council that local data show the county ranks near the top of Utah on many health indicators and urged residents to complete a community health assessment that will guide a new Community Health Improvement Plan.
Kendra Babitz, deputy director of the Summit County Health Department, told the county council on July 31 that Summit County ranks among the healthiest counties in Utah across a range of measures, and urged residents to take a new community health assessment to shape the health department’s priorities.
“Our zip code matters more than our genetic code,” Babitz said, summarizing the presentation’s central point about social determinants of health. She told the council the county’s life expectancy is about 85.5 years, compared with a state average of 79.7 and a U.S. average of 77.5 years.
Babitz walked the council through the Utah Healthy Places Index (HPI), a multi‑indicator tool that pulls together dozens of population and community measures into an index county staff use to compare neighborhoods and identify priorities. She highlighted indicators where the county ranks in the top 10–25 percent statewide — tree canopy, bachelor’s‑degree attainment, automobile access, broadband availability, and low rates of childhood poverty — and stressed mental‑health metrics where Summit placed first in the state.
“About 93.2 percent of adults say they always or usually have the social and emotional support they need,” Babitz said, noting that no other county approached that level in the state data she displayed.
She told the council the health department is launching a countywide community health assessment available in English and Spanish that will be open through the end of the year. The assessment will inform a Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) to be drafted before the next budget cycle to guide investments.
Council members asked staff how to access the HPI and the data behind it; Babitz said the HPI allows side‑by‑side indicator comparisons across counties and census tracts and offered to prepare customized presentations for council members or community groups.
Next steps the department described include broad distribution of flyers and postcards, targeted outreach (including Spanish materials), and a plan to use the survey results to set program priorities and potential budget requests for the coming year. Babitz said the assessment takes about 10 minutes to complete and invited council members to help circulate the materials.
The council thanked Babitz and county health staff for the presentation and accepted packets she offered for community distribution. The department indicated it will follow up with council offices to provide materials and data requests.
