ZIP code
42716
in Buffalo, KentuckyPopulation 1,659
44.61/ 100
Ranked #22,804 of 32,066 US ZIPs (bottom 29%)
Ranked #153 of 742 Kentucky ZIPs (top 21%)
Ranked #7 of 13 Elizabethtown, KY ZIPs (bottom 46%)
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.
Fatal road crashes
42.2 per 100,000 residents per year
in the top 6.1% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST94thUS94thDefinition & 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 ›Natural-disaster risk
in the bottom 9.4% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST14thUS9thDefinition & source ›
This area’s national rank on its single highest non-flood natural hazard — such as wildfire, tornado, or earthquake — in FEMA’s modeled National Risk Index; flooding is shown separately.
Full methodology ›Crowded housing
5.4%
in the top 12.3% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST93rdUS88thDefinition & source ›
The share of occupied homes with more than one person per room, the Census definition of crowded housing.
Full methodology ›The read
Working only from the data in hand, Buffalo, Kentucky (ZIP 42716) lands in the bottom 29% nationally (22,804th) and the top 21% of Kentucky (153rd), based on limited data; treat as directional.
The measures that are covered come first, caveats noted: modeled disaster risk stands in the bottom 9.4% nationally, and distance to a hazardous-chemical facility settles in the top 14.3% nationally. Modeled arsenic lies in the bottom 18% nationally. Outer-floodplain exposure resides at the national minimum, shared with about 36% of ZIPs. Homeownership lands in the top 18% nationally. By contrast, fatal road crashes registers in the top 6.1% nationally, modeled short sleep sits in the top 10.9% nationally, and crowded housing rests in the top 12.3% nationally. Slow internet speeds is in the top 16% nationally. Recreation stands at the national minimum, shared with about 35% of ZIPs.
To translate a couple of terms, disaster risk is the area's national rank on its highest non-flood peril in FEMA's modeled Risk Index, like wildfire or quake. Distance to a hazardous-chemical facility is a plant handling large amounts of hazardous chemicals that must file an EPA risk-management plan for accidental releases. Arsenic is a natural groundwater contaminant, here a modeled estimate of the chance private-well levels exceed a benchmark. Overall, the nearest healthier neighbor is ZIP 40052, about 1.2 miles away.
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.
Nothing measured is lifting this score.
About typical
Social Need / SDOH
healthier than 43%
19%
Environmental Hazard
healthier than 58%
16%
Preventive CarePartial
healthier than 43%
15%
Climate / Disaster Risk
healthier than 54%
6%
Healthcare Access
healthier than 46%
6%
Nothing measured is holding this score back.
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
Social Need / SDOH
healthier than 92%
19%
Environmental Hazard
in the top 0.00%
16%
Preventive CarePartial
in the top 0.00%
15%
Climate / Disaster Risk
in the top 0.10%
6%
Holding it back
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
42718
Kentuckyshares a border
Score 42.59
Closest healthier
40052
Kentuckyabout 1.2 mi away
Score 47.12
Similar health profile
47388
Indiana99% similar profile
Score 45.42
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 | 16.7% | 13.9–19.9 |
PreventionCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Colorectal cancer screening among adults aged 45–75 years | 66.6% | 61.9–71.3 |
| Visited dentist or dental clinic in the past year among adults | 58.3% | 54.9–61.9 |
| Mammography use among women aged 50-74 years | 75.2% | 68.4–81.6 |
Health Risk BehaviorsCDC PLACES 2022 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Short sleep duration among adults | 41.5% | 35.1–48.4 |
Community & economyCensus ACS 5-Year · 2024 release · observed
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | KY median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poverty rate | 9.9% | 10.6% (3.1–25.8%) n=32,364 | 17.1% (4.6–39.2%) n=747 |
| Uninsured 18–64 | 5.0% | 9.0% (1.5–24.3%) n=32,286 | 6.9% (0.0–16.5%) n=741 |
| No HS diploma (25+) | 11.9% | 7.9% (1.8–20.7%) n=32,505 | 13.7% (3.8–29.1%) n=748 |
| Bachelor's or higher (25+) | 13.6% | 23.3% (9.2–53.6%) n=32,505 | 14.8% (1.5–33.6%) n=748 |
| Unemployment rate (16+) | 1.5% | 3.9% (0.0–9.8%) n=32,274 | 3.8% (0.0–11.2%) n=733 |
| Households without a vehicle | 4.0% | 3.9% (0.0–12.5%) n=32,322 | 4.6% (0.0–15.0%) n=745 |
| Broadband subscription | 92.3% | 89.3% (75.1–97.1%) n=32,322 | 86.7% (71.5–97.1%) n=745 |
| Housing cost burden (≥30% income) | 21.9% | 23.7% (10.6–40.0%) n=32,322 | 20.9% (6.2–34.7%) n=745 |
| Homeownership rate | 89.8% | 78.7% (51.7–94.0%) n=32,322 | 78.0% (58.2–96.7%) n=745 |
| Crowded housing (>1 per room) | 5.4% | 1.3% (0.0–6.3%) n=32,322 | 0.7% (0.0–4.8%) n=745 |
| Foreign-born population | 7.8% | 2.6% (0.0–18.6%) n=32,553 | 0.3% (0.0–5.4%) n=749 |
| Single-parent households | 61.6% | 53.6% (37.3–74.1%) n=32,087 | 52.0% (34.7–75.0%) n=738 |
| Population 65+ | 16.6% | 19.4% (10.8–33.6%) n=32,553 | 18.2% (9.6–29.6%) n=749 |
| Median age | 46.0 yr | 42.2 yr (33.0–56.3) n=32,292 | 41.8 yr (32.3–53.9) n=738 |
| Median household income | $72,125 | $72,070 ($46,039–$118,707) n=30,318 | $57,097 ($34,611–$87,693) n=645 |
| Median home value | $188,800 | $222,200 ($100,300–$579,820) n=30,049 | $144,600 ($66,860–$265,120) n=643 |
| Median gross rent | $1,114 | $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 | 76.4 yr ± 1.15 | 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 1.15 years of 76.4, 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