Two worrying mental, maternal health trends emerge in 2024 Mecklenburg County report
More Mecklenburg residents are getting access to health care, but the county is struggling to address maternal mortality and a mental health crisis, county public health officials say.
County health director Dr. Raynard Washington on Tuesday presented the 2024 State of the County Health Report to county commissioners. The health department presents the report during years when it doesn’t have a new multi-year Community Health Assessment, which examines local needs.
The 2024 report shows Mecklenburg made strides decreasing the number of uninsured adults, down to 13.2% of residents from about 16% in 2018, and adults without a primary care doctor, down to 22.3% of residents from about 28% in 2018. The county also reported a decrease in the number of residents unable to see a doctor due to the cost, down to 15.1% of residents from about 19% in 2018.
The data came from multiple local, state and federal sources.
Washington attributed some of the gains in access to health care to the expansion of Medicaid in North Carolina and predicted the expansion would lead to more progress.
“We hope it will continue to improve,” he said.
Washington also highlighted two areas of concern: mental health and maternal and infant health.
The rates of young people in Mecklenburg going to emergency rooms due to suicidal thoughts or a suicide attempt and of adults going to emergency rooms due to depression are getting worse, according to the presentation. The rate of adults reporting eight or more days per month of “not good” mental health also increased, to 20.1% of residents from about 15% in 2018.
“There’s just a general level of mental distress in the community,” Washington said.
Washington told commissioners the health department’s goal is to slow the growing rate of people experiencing mental health issues.
“Change in these areas is not immediate. It’s not like dealing with an infectious disease,” he said.
The county is also struggling to meet its goals to decrease rates of maternal mortality, infant mortality, preterm birth and low birth weight, especially when it comes to how pregnancy complications disproportionately affect women and children of color.
“We continue to see disparities across racial groups,” he said.
Asked how Mecklenburg compares to other communities, Washington said the county is broadly “above the middle,” but it’s “overall health is definitely poorer” than some other parts of the state — particularly Wake County.
“It just depends on which community you compare us to,” he said
County health director addresses measles case
Washington also addressed a case of measles announced earlier in the week.
The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services on Monday announced a child in Mecklenburg County was diagnosed with measles, the first confirmed case in North Carolina since 2018.
Washington said the county health department is working with state and federal partners to follow up on any potential exposures related to the case.
“Right now, it does appear the situation is largely isolated. There are not a significant number of potential community exposures, which is good news,” he said.
He reiterated the importance of vaccinating kids against preventable diseases, including measles, mumps and whooping cough.
“We are seeing a resurgence of these conditions that are essentially preventable if kids get vaccinated,” he said.
This story was originally published September 10, 2024 at 6:11 PM.
