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ZipVitals

ZIP code

16822

in Beech Creek, PennsylvaniaPopulation 1,784

46.53/ 100

Ranked #20,722 of 32,066 US ZIPs (bottom 35%)

Ranked #1,230 of 1,748 Pennsylvania ZIPs (bottom 30%)

Ranks are modeled estimates — ZIPs a few hundred places apart are effectively tied.

Some domains have limited local data — read this Score as directional

What defines this ZIP

Metrics where this ZIP sits in the tails of the national distribution — the ones that most set it apart. Select any tile for its definition and methodology.

Tree cover

86.7%

in the top 2.5% nationally

Higher is healthier

ST97th
US98th
Definition & source ›

The share of this ZIP’s land area covered by forest.

Full methodology ›

Radon

3.1 pCi/L

in the top 9.2% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST88th
US91st
Definition & source ›

The modeled typical indoor radon level for this area, in picocuries per liter — the EPA recommends fixing a home at 4 pCi/L or above.

Modeled from indoor-radon measurements. In Alaska and Hawaii, where those measurements are not published, a US Geological Survey geologic radon-potential category stands in — a coarser input, disclosed rather than hidden.

Full methodology ›

Slow internet speeds

1.4%

in the top 8.5% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST96th
US92nd
Definition & source ›

The share of homes whose fastest available download speed is under 10 Mbps.

Full methodology ›

Fatal road crashes

33.6 per 100,000 residents per year

in the top 10.5% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST95th
US90th
Definition & source ›

The annual rate of fatal road crashes per 100,000 residents, pooled over a ten-year window.

A rate per resident population. Where a ZIP has too few residents for the rate to be reliable — about 30% of US ZIPs — no value is published rather than an unstable one; those ZIPs are absent from this comparison, not counted as crash-free.

Full methodology ›

Air-toxics cancer risk

20 per million

in the bottom 25% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST1st
US25th
Definition & source ›

The EPA’s modeled estimate of added lifetime cancer risk from breathing outdoor air toxics, in cases per million people exposed over a lifetime.

Full methodology ›

The read

Working from the partial data available, Beech Creek, Pennsylvania (ZIP 16822) lands in the bottom 35% nationally (20,722nd) and the bottom 30% of Pennsylvania (1,230th), based on limited data; treat as directional.

continue reading

On the measures in hand, a few readings come through: modeled tree cover lands in the top 2.5% nationally. Modeled extreme heat rests at the national minimum, shared with about 19% of ZIPs. Against that, modeled radon settles in the top 9.2% nationally, and slow internet speeds lands in the top 8.5% nationally. Fiber broadband rests at the national minimum, shared with about 19% of ZIPs. Fatal road crashes settles in the top 10.5% nationally, and modeled short sleep lands in the top 14.9% nationally. Modeled energy burden rests in the top 12.8% nationally. Recreation settles at the national minimum, shared with about 35% of ZIPs. Distance to a Superfund site lands in the bottom 19% nationally.

Set within its surrounding area, park land runs far lower than the surrounding ZIPs on this measure. Defined simply, for reference, radon is a radioactive soil gas the EPA identifies as the top cause of lung cancer in nonsmokers. Distance to a Superfund site is an abandoned or uncontrolled hazardous-waste site the EPA has identified for cleanup. Extreme heat is a modeled count of days a year reaching a dangerously high temperature, a leading weather hazard. The closest healthier ZIP overall is ZIP 16826, just across the boundary.

What’s driving this score

Nine domains make up the ZipVitals Score — here is how this ZIP does on each, and how much each one counts.

Compared with the ZIP codes measured across all nine scoring domains — not with all US ZIP codes.

Lifting this score

Preventive CarePartial

healthier than 60%

15%

Climate / Disaster Risk

healthier than 77%

6%

About typical

Healthcare Access

healthier than 43%

6%

Holding it back

Social Need / SDOH

healthier than 15%

19%

Environmental Hazard

healthier than 12%

16%

Not placed: Chronic Disease Burden and Risk Behavior — too little of each is measured here to compare reliably. They still count toward the score (together 38% of it); we just will not publish a standing we cannot stand behind.

No data: Mental Health and Disability — not measured in this ZIP, so it is left out of the score entirely rather than estimated.

“Share” is how much of this ZIP’s score the domain accounts for. Percentages are rounded; higher is healthier in every domain. How the score works, and who it compares you with ›

Nearby & similar ZIPs

Editorially selected — see how this ZIP compares to nearby and similar places.

How these were chosen: only ZIPs with a published Score appear — a nearby ZIP with too little data to score won’t. Nearby means closest by distance between ZIP boundaries, which can cross state lines. A similar health profile is a close match across the nine Score domains, not similar demographics. Distances are measured between ZIP boundaries — ZIPs that touch share a border. How distance is measured

Evidence

Every measure this page draws on, by source. Collapsed by default — the full data stays in the page for search engines either way.

Health OutcomesCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
MeasureCrude prevalence95% CI
All teeth lost among adults aged >=65 years13.7%11.2–16.5
PreventionCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
MeasureCrude prevalence95% CI
Colorectal cancer screening among adults aged 45–75 years69.6%65.1–74.0
Visited dentist or dental clinic in the past year among adults60.8%57.2–64.4
Mammography use among women aged 50-74 years75.1%67.8–81.6
Health Risk BehaviorsCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
MeasureCrude prevalence95% CI
Short sleep duration among adults40.5%34.1–47.0
Community & economyCensus ACS 5-Year · 2024 release · observed
MeasureValueUS median (p10–p90)PA median (p10–p90)
Poverty rate11.1%10.6% (3.1–25.8%) n=32,3649.3% (2.1–21.6%) n=1,759
Uninsured 18–646.5%9.0% (1.5–24.3%) n=32,2866.3% (0.0–16.6%) n=1,753
No HS diploma (25+)10.4%7.9% (1.8–20.7%) n=32,5057.0% (1.5–16.1%) n=1,762
Bachelor's or higher (25+)16.8%23.3% (9.2–53.6%) n=32,50521.9% (8.9–50.4%) n=1,762
Unemployment rate (16+)3.9%3.9% (0.0–9.8%) n=32,2743.9% (0.0–9.6%) n=1,755
Households without a vehicle4.4%3.9% (0.0–12.5%) n=32,3224.8% (0.0–15.6%) n=1,758
Broadband subscription91.9%89.3% (75.1–97.1%) n=32,32288.2% (75.7–97.3%) n=1,758
Housing cost burden (≥30% income)19.4%23.7% (10.6–40.0%) n=32,32221.9% (9.9–35.3%) n=1,758
Homeownership rate83.5%78.7% (51.7–94.0%) n=32,32280.1% (57.1–94.5%) n=1,758
Crowded housing (>1 per room)1.4%1.3% (0.0–6.3%) n=32,3220.6% (0.0–3.3%) n=1,758
Foreign-born population0.3%2.6% (0.0–18.6%) n=32,5531.4% (0.0–10.2%) n=1,763
Single-parent households64.0%53.6% (37.3–74.1%) n=32,08756.3% (38.5–72.8%) n=1,744
Population 65+19.5%19.4% (10.8–33.6%) n=32,55321.1% (12.3–31.4%) n=1,763
Median age46.1 yr42.2 yr (33.0–56.3) n=32,29244.2 yr (33.9–55.5) n=1,752
Median household income$71,635$72,070 ($46,039–$118,707) n=30,318$71,250 ($50,880–$112,747) n=1,642
Median home value$200,000$222,200 ($100,300–$579,820) n=30,049$197,200 ($99,000–$382,120) n=1,649
Median gross rent$672$1,021 ($677–$1,912) n=25,670$983 ($701–$1,527) n=1,367
Life expectancyNCHS / RWJF USALEEP · model-based
MeasureValueUS median (p10–p90)PA median (p10–p90)
Life expectancy at birth79.1 yr ± 1.2178.9 yr (74.7–82.8) n=31,30879.2 yr (76.0–82.0) n=1,730

About the ± — it’s this estimate’s give-or-take (statisticians call it the standard error). The true life expectancy for this ZIP most likely falls within 1.21 years of 79.1, and it’s very unlikely to be off by more than twice that.

More ZIPs to explore ▾

How these lists were built: they draw only from ZIPs that have a published Score, so ZIPs with too little data to score are not listed. Distance-based lists use distance between ZIP boundaries with no state filter, so an out-of-state ZIP can appear. Statistically similar means a close match across the nine Score domains, not a demographic match: the measure is the cosine similarity between two ZIPs’ domain scores, taken over the domains both ZIPs have data for and only where that overlap covers at least six of the nine — and where no ZIP clears that minimum-overlap floor, that list is left out rather than filled with a weak match. How distance is measured