ZIP code
41522
in Elkhorn City, KentuckyPopulation 4,341
20.66/ 100
Ranked #31,843 of 32,066 US ZIPs (bottom 0.7%)
Ranked #662 of 742 Kentucky ZIPs (bottom 10.8%)
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.
Tooth loss
32.4%
in the top 2.0% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST86thUS98thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults aged 65 and older who have lost all of their natural teeth.
Full methodology ›Short sleep
45.6%
in the top 2.4% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST93rdUS98thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who usually sleep less than seven hours in a 24-hour period.
Full methodology ›Tree cover
86.1%
in the top 2.6% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST82ndUS97thDefinition & source ›
The share of this ZIP’s land area covered by forest.
Full methodology ›Pharmacy access
0.61 per 1,000 residents
in the top 3.2% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST94thUS97thDefinition & source ›
The number of pharmacies located inside this ZIP’s boundary, per 1,000 residents.
Counted from establishments located inside this ZIP’s boundary, so one just across the line is not counted. Where a ZIP has too few residents for the density to be reliable, no value is published rather than an unreliable one.
Full methodology ›Poverty rate
31.9%
in the top 5.8% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST84thUS94thDefinition & source ›
The share of residents whose income is below the federal poverty line, from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey.
Full methodology ›Energy-cost burden
5.5%
in the top 5.2% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST93rdUS95thDefinition & source ›
The modeled share of household income spent on home energy bills — electricity, gas, and heating fuels.
A modeled share of household income spent on home energy. Estimates that hit the model’s 100% ceiling are suppressed rather than published, because at that point the figure reflects the model’s limit rather than a measured burden.
Full methodology ›Households without a vehicle
15%
in the top 7.3% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST90thUS93rdDefinition & source ›
The share of households with no vehicle available.
Full methodology ›Home broadband subscription
72.6%
in the bottom 7.8% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST11thUS8thDefinition & source ›
The share of households with a broadband internet subscription.
Full methodology ›Fatal road crashes
34.6 per 100,000 residents per year
in the top 9.9% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST87thUS90thDefinition & 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 ›Median household income
$37,331
in the bottom 4.4% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST14thUS4thDefinition & source ›
The middle household income in this ZIP — half of households earn more, half earn less — in dollars per year.
Full methodology ›The read
With the picture still incomplete, Elkhorn City, Kentucky (ZIP 41522) lands in the bottom 0.7% nationally (31,843rd) and the bottom 10.8% of Kentucky (662nd), based on limited data; treat as directional.
Where the data does reach, it says a few things here: modeled tree cover rests in the top 2.6% nationally, and pharmacy sits in the top 3.2% nationally. Modeled extreme heat registers at the national minimum, shared with about 19% of ZIPs. Set against that, modeled tooth loss lands in the top 2.0% nationally, and short sleep resides in the top 2.4% nationally. Poverty lies in the top 5.8% nationally, and modeled energy burden settles in the top 5.2% nationally. Households without a vehicle stands in the top 7.3% nationally, and home broadband subscription is in the bottom 7.8% nationally. Fatal road crashes rests in the top 9.9% nationally.
In everyday language, energy burden is the share of household income that goes to home energy bills. Extreme heat is a modeled count of days a year reaching a dangerously high temperature, a leading weather hazard. A healthier neighbor overall sits at ZIP 24228, 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
Climate / Disaster Risk
healthier than 66%
6%
Healthcare Access
healthier than 77%
6%
About typical
Environmental Hazard
healthier than 40%
16%
Holding it back
Social Need / SDOH
healthier than 5%
19%
Preventive CarePartial
healthier than 11%
15%
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.
Lifting this score
Environmental Hazard
healthier than 89%
16%
Climate / Disaster Risk
in the top 0.00%
6%
Holding it back
Social Need / SDOH
in the bottom 0.00%
19%
Preventive CarePartial
in the bottom 0.00%
15%
Healthcare Access
in the bottom 0.00%
6%
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.
Nearby
24228
Virginiashares a border
Score 40.38
Closest healthier
24256
Virginiashares a border
Score 40.71
Similar health profile
41640
Kentucky100% similar profile
Score 24.60
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
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| All teeth lost among adults aged >=65 years | 32.4% | 27.4–37.8 |
PreventionCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Colorectal cancer screening among adults aged 45–75 years | 63.1% | 57.9–68.0 |
| Visited dentist or dental clinic in the past year among adults | 49.6% | 45.7–53.6 |
| Mammography use among women aged 50-74 years | 71.0% | 62.4–78.6 |
Health Risk BehaviorsCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Short sleep duration among adults | 45.6% | 39.2–52.2 |
Community & economyCensus ACS 5-Year · 2024 release · observed
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | KY median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poverty rate | 31.9% | 10.6% (3.1–25.8%) n=32,364 | 17.1% (4.6–39.2%) n=747 |
| Uninsured 18–64 | 6.6% | 9.0% (1.5–24.3%) n=32,286 | 6.9% (0.0–16.5%) n=741 |
| No HS diploma (25+) | 18.4% | 7.9% (1.8–20.7%) n=32,505 | 13.7% (3.8–29.1%) n=748 |
| Bachelor's or higher (25+) | 14.1% | 23.3% (9.2–53.6%) n=32,505 | 14.8% (1.5–33.6%) n=748 |
| Unemployment rate (16+) | 5.7% | 3.9% (0.0–9.8%) n=32,274 | 3.8% (0.0–11.2%) n=733 |
| Households without a vehicle | 15.0% | 3.9% (0.0–12.5%) n=32,322 | 4.6% (0.0–15.0%) n=745 |
| Broadband subscription | 72.6% | 89.3% (75.1–97.1%) n=32,322 | 86.7% (71.5–97.1%) n=745 |
| Housing cost burden (≥30% income) | 23.4% | 23.7% (10.6–40.0%) n=32,322 | 20.9% (6.2–34.7%) n=745 |
| Homeownership rate | 78.6% | 78.7% (51.7–94.0%) n=32,322 | 78.0% (58.2–96.7%) n=745 |
| Crowded housing (>1 per room) | 5.0% | 1.3% (0.0–6.3%) n=32,322 | 0.7% (0.0–4.8%) n=745 |
| Foreign-born population | 0.0% | 2.6% (0.0–18.6%) n=32,553 | 0.3% (0.0–5.4%) n=749 |
| Single-parent households | 56.6% | 53.6% (37.3–74.1%) n=32,087 | 52.0% (34.7–75.0%) n=738 |
| Population 65+ | 32.7% | 19.4% (10.8–33.6%) n=32,553 | 18.2% (9.6–29.6%) n=749 |
| Median age | 51.1 yr | 42.2 yr (33.0–56.3) n=32,292 | 41.8 yr (32.3–53.9) n=738 |
| Median household income | $37,331 | $72,070 ($46,039–$118,707) n=30,318 | $57,097 ($34,611–$87,693) n=645 |
| Median home value | $90,600 | $222,200 ($100,300–$579,820) n=30,049 | $144,600 ($66,860–$265,120) n=643 |
| Median gross rent | $879 | $1,021 ($677–$1,912) n=25,670 | $821 ($592–$1,170) n=466 |
Life expectancyNCHS / RWJF USALEEP · model-based
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | KY median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy at birth | 71.0 yr ± 1.37 | 78.9 yr (74.7–82.8) n=31,308 | 74.8 yr (71.5–78.1) n=739 |
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 1.37 years of 71.0, and it’s very unlikely to be off by more than twice that.
More ZIPs to explore ▾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