|
 Washington County
Land Area: 564 square miles
Population (2000): 51,103
Washington County stretches across the broad and beautiful Tennessee
Valley. Clinch Mountain bounds the county to the north and the southeastern
corner pushes into the Iron Mountain range. The county is drained by
two branches of the Holston River. The local landscape is characterized
by pastured hills, quiet, cultivated valleys, and densely forested mountain
steeps.
 Major elements of the Washington County economy
include manufacturing, trade, service industries, and transfer income
(retirement pensions, disability payments, and welfare benefits). Tobacco
agriculture and stock farming also make substantial contributions to
the local economy. In 1995, the largest employers were Bristol Compressors
(refrigeration and heating equipment), the school board, Johnston Memorial
Hospital, Mid-Mountain Foods, and the Camac Corporation (organic fibers.)
 There are several small towns in Washington
County, including Abingdon (pop. 7,780), which is the seat of government,
Damascus (pop. 981), Emory-Meadow View (pop. 2,266), and Glade Spring
(pop. 1,374). Attractions in the area include the historic Town of Abingdon
with its Barter Theater, William King Regional Arts Center, Virginia
Creeper Trail, Virginia Highlands Festival, and Martha Washington Inn.
Outdoors enthusiasts can swim, hike, bike, hunt, fish and ride in a
number of state and national recreation areas: Grayson Highlands State
Park, Mount Rogers Recreation Area, Jefferson National Forest, and South
Holston Lake.
Death rates from some common causes are higher in Washington County than in Virginia - e.g., chronic lower respiratory diseases (+31%), unintentional injury (+26%), pneumonia and influenza (+93%), chronic liver disease, and suicide (+26%). Death rates from other common causes are lower in Washington County than in Virginia : heart disease (-5%), cancer (-7%), stroke (-38%), diabetes mellitus (-3%), septicemia (-40%), and nephritis and nephrosis (-10%). The Alzheimer's death rate is the same in Washington County as in Virginia .
The total pregnancy rate for women aged 15-44 in Washington County is 30% lower than in Virginia . The teen pregnancy rate is 20% lower in Washington County . Women in the county are 6% more likely to receive prenatal care in the first trimester than women in Virginia as a whole. Babies born to Washington County residents are 9% less likely to be low birth weight and they are 43% less likely to die during the first year of life than babies born to residents of Virginia as a whole.
The population of Washington County is somewhat less prosperous than
the population of Virginia. The poverty rate in Washington is 13% higher
than in Virginia and the per capita income for Washington Countians
is only 76% of the per capita income for Virginians. Proportionately
fewer people in Washington County are in the labor force and the proportion
of Washington Countians over the age of 25 without a high school diploma
is 50% higher than in Virginia. Improved access to primary care should
improve the health status of the Washington County population.
|
Population Health
|
Washington |
Virginia |
| Disabled Population, Ages 5-20 (2000) |
7.2% |
8.1% |
| Disabled Population, Ages 21-64 (2000) |
23.1% |
17.5% |
| Disabled Population, Ages 65+ (2000) |
45.1% |
42.1% |
| |
|
|
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Diseases of the Heart |
206.6 |
218.0 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Malignant Neoplasms |
176.9 |
190.0 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Cerebrovascular Diseases |
36.4 |
58.3 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - COPD |
51.3 |
39.2 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Unintentional Injury |
41.2 |
32.8 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Pneumonia and Influenza |
43.9 |
22.7 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Diabetes Mellitus |
21.0 |
21.7 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Suicide |
14.0 |
11.1 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Septicemia |
9.2 |
15.4 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Nephritis and Nephrosis |
14.0 |
15.6 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Chronic Liver Disease/Cirrhosis |
9.2 |
7.7 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Alzheimers Disease |
15.9 |
15.9 |
| |
|
|
| Total Pregnancy Terminations (Residents) Per 1,000 Females Aged 15-44 (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
57.6 |
82.6 |
| Teenage Pregnancies Per 1,000 Females Aged 10-19 (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
25.0 |
31.3 |
| Percent of Resident Live Births Beginning Prenatal Care in 1st Trimester (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
89.8% |
84.8% |
| Low Weight Live Births as a Percent of Total Births (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
7.2% |
7.9% |
| Resident Infant Deaths Per 1,000 Lives Births (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
4.1 |
7.2 |
| |
|
|
| Economic Indicators |
|
|
| Population with Medicaid (2004) |
14.0% |
10.8% |
| Poverty Rate (2000) |
10.9% |
9.6% |
| Per Capita Income (2000) |
$18,305 |
$23,975 |
| Population Aged 16+ in Labor Force (2000) |
59.4% |
66.8% |
| Population Aged 25+ w/o High School Diploma (2000) |
27.7% |
18.5% |
| |
|
|
| Employment By Industry |
|
|
| Agriculture, Forestry, Mining, Fishing, Hunting |
4.0% |
1.3% |
| Construction |
7.3% |
7.3% |
| Manufacturing |
22.0% |
11.3% |
| Retail and Wholesale Trade |
17.8% |
14.1% |
| Transportation and Warehousing and Utilities |
4.3% |
4.6% |
| Information |
2.1% |
3.8% |
| Finance, Insurance, Real Estate, Rental and Leasing |
4.4% |
6.6% |
| Professional, Scientific, Management, Adminstrative, and Waste
Management Services |
5.9% |
11.6% |
| Education, Health, and Social Services |
17.8% |
18.3% |
| Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, Accommodation and Food Services |
7.1% |
7.2% |
| Public Administration |
3.3% |
8.3% |
| Other Services |
4.0% |
5.4% |
Links
Washington County - http://portal.washcova.com/portal/public/
Washington County - http://www.mrpdc.org/econ_stats.htm
Southwest Virginia Higher Education Center - http://www.swcenter.edu/
Virginia Highlands Community College - http://www.vhcc.edu/
Emory and Henry Collge - http://www.ehc.edu/
Mount Rogers Health District - http://www.vdh.state.va.us/LHD/mtrogers/index.asp
Johnston Memorial Hospital - http://www.jmh.org
Abingdon (town) - http://www.abingdon.com/
Glade Spring (town) - http://www.abingdon.com/
|