Residents of Virginia’s ‘Appalachian Corner’ Report Worse Health Than Other State Residents, Survey Finds

People in Southwest Virginia's "Appalachian corner" are more likely to report being in poor health than Virginians as a whole due to factors such as a lack of health insurance and reluctance to visit a doctor, the Richmond Times-Dispatch reports. A survey released this week by the Southwest Virginia Medical Education Consortium found that 48% of Southwest Virginians say they are in "poor or fair" health, compared to 13% of residents statewide. Only 9% of Southwest Virginia residents say they are in "excellent" health, compared to 60% statewide. Tony Lawson, director of the consortium, said that people in Southwest Virginia are also more likely than Virginians as a whole to have chronic illnesses and to report high rates of heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, emphysema, arthritis, dental problems, depression and cancer. Lawson said that Southwest Virginians face several obstacles to obtaining care and "are concerned about health care access." Although there are "enough doctors" in the area, as many as 25% of residents lack health insurance. Many residents without health coverage "go to the doctor only when they are sick and after they've tried to heal themselves." The consortium plans to share the survey results with state legislators in an effort to improve health care in Southwest Virginia (Bowman, Richmond Times-Dispatch, 11/2).