ZIP code
78609
in Buchanan Dam, TexasPopulation 1,983
43.33/ 100
Ranked #24,083 of 32,066 US ZIPs (bottom 25%)
Ranked #1,165 of 1,868 Texas ZIPs (bottom 38%)
Ranks are modeled estimates — ZIPs a few hundred places apart are effectively tied.
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.
Dry extreme heat
95.2 days/year
in the top 1.8% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST90thUS98thDefinition & source ›
The average number of days per year with a modeled daily high of at least 95 °F.
Full methodology ›High cholesterol
46.8%
in the top 1.7% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST99thUS98thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults with high cholesterol, among those who have ever been screened for it.
Full methodology ›Fatal road crashes
55.5 per 100,000 residents per year
in the top 2.9% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST94thUS97thDefinition & 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 ›Coronary heart disease
11.2%
in the top 3.6% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST97thUS96thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who have been told by a health professional that they have coronary heart disease or angina.
Full methodology ›Distance to a community health center
32.6 mi
in the top 3.5% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST96thUS97thDefinition & source ›
The distance in miles from this ZIP’s edge to the nearest federally funded community health center, which serves patients regardless of ability to pay.
Full methodology ›Hearing disability
12.0%
in the top 4.5% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST98thUS96thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who are deaf or have serious difficulty hearing.
Full methodology ›Floodplain exposure
45.6%
in the top 4.9% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST93rdUS95thDefinition & source ›
The share of this ZIP’s land area inside FEMA’s 1%-annual-chance floodplain — the “100-year” flood zone, where flooding has about a 1-in-100 chance in any given year.
Measured from FEMA’s mapped flood panels. Where a panel has not been mapped, no value is published for that ZIP — those ZIPs are absent from this comparison rather than counted as unexposed.
Full methodology ›Industrial-pollution burden
in the bottom 5.1% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST5thUS5thDefinition & source ›
The EPA’s modeled screening score for industrial chemical releases, weighting the amounts released by their toxicity and how many people live nearby — a relative comparison score, not a measured exposure.
Full methodology ›High blood pressure
48.5%
in the top 5.2% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST98thUS95thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who have been told by a health professional that they have high blood pressure.
Full methodology ›Stroke
5.6%
in the top 6.9% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST96thUS93rdDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who have been told by a health professional that they have had a stroke.
Full methodology ›The read
Buchanan Dam, Texas (ZIP 78609), in overall standing, comes out in the bottom 25% nationally (24,083rd) and the bottom 38% of Texas (1,165th).
A few readings account for most of this area's strain: modeled extreme heat settles in the top 1.8% nationally, modeled high cholesterol lands in the top 1.7% nationally, and fatal road crashes rests in the top 2.9% nationally. Modeled coronary heart disease settles in the top 3.6% nationally, distance to a community health center lands in the top 3.5% nationally, and modeled hearing disability rests in the top 4.5% nationally. Floodplain exposure settles in the top 4.9% nationally, and modeled high blood pressure lands in the top 5.2% nationally. Modeled stroke rests in the top 6.9% nationally. On the better side, modeled industrial-pollution burden settles in the bottom 5.1% nationally.
Defined simply, for reference, industrial-pollution burden is the EPA's modeled screening score weighting industrial chemical releases by their toxicity and how many people live nearby. Extreme heat is a modeled count of days a year reaching a dangerously high temperature, a leading weather hazard. Distance to a community health center is a federally funded (HRSA) community health center serving everyone regardless of ability to pay. The closest healthier ZIP overall is ZIP 78607, 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
Social Need / SDOH
healthier than 60%
16%
Environmental Hazard
healthier than 95%
14%
Preventive Care
healthier than 73%
13%
Risk Behavior
healthier than 67%
11%
Mental Health
healthier than 73%
8%
Holding it back
Chronic Disease Burden
healthier than 7%
21%
Disability
healthier than 21%
7%
Climate / Disaster Risk
in the bottom 0.4%
5%
Healthcare Access
healthier than 3%
5%
Lifting this score
Environmental Hazard
healthier than 94%
14%
Preventive Care
healthier than 97%
13%
Risk Behavior
healthier than 83%
11%
Mental Health
healthier than 79%
8%
About typical
Social Need / SDOH
healthier than 60%
16%
Holding it back
Chronic Disease Burden
healthier than 2%
21%
Disability
healthier than 25%
7%
Climate / Disaster Risk
healthier than 2%
5%
Healthcare Access
in the bottom 0.9%
5%
“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 ›
Findings that name this ZIP
One of our published findings lists this ZIP code. Each finding compares one published measure against a stated benchmark, and names only the ZIP codes whose estimates are reliable enough to rank. See all surprising findings.
Clean environment, heavy chronic burden
Where the environment and chronic illness point in opposite directions
Environmental-hazard standing 95.2 (top 10%); chronic-disease standing 7.1 (bottom 10%) — 88 points apart, cleaner on the environment than it is on chronic illness.
Ranked #174 of the 18,187 ZIP codes this finding names, ordered by the gap from cleanest environment to heaviest chronic burden, highest first.
Nearby & similar ZIPs
Editorially selected — see how this ZIP compares to nearby and similar places.
Nearby
78607
Texasshares a border
Score 48.75
Closest healthier
78611
Texasshares a border
Score 50.98
Similar health profile
76873
Texas99% similar profile
Score 43.89
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 / 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Arthritis among adults | 38.8% | 34.7–43.1 |
| High blood pressure among adults | 48.5% | 43.6–53.4 |
| Cancer (non-skin) or melanoma among adults | 13.4% | 12.0–14.8 |
| Current asthma among adults | 10.2% | 9.0–11.5 |
| Coronary heart disease among adults | 11.2% | 9.9–12.7 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among adults | 11.3% | 9.5–13.2 |
| Depression among adults | 22.2% | 18.9–25.8 |
| Diagnosed diabetes among adults | 17.7% | 15.2–20.2 |
| High cholesterol among adults who have ever been screened | 46.8% | 41.8–51.7 |
| Obesity among adults | 37.9% | 29.6–46.7 |
| Stroke among adults | 5.6% | 4.9–6.3 |
| All teeth lost among adults aged >=65 years | 11.8% | 9.6–14.4 |
PreventionCDC PLACES 2022 / 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Current lack of health insurance among adults aged 18-64 years | 10.3% | 8.3–12.7 |
| Taking medicine to control high blood pressure among adults with high blood pressure | 85.0% | 82.2–87.4 |
| Visits to doctor for routine checkup within the past year among adults | 81.6% | 78.4–84.7 |
| Cholesterol screening among adults | 91.2% | 89.9–92.5 |
| Colorectal cancer screening among adults aged 45–75 years | 69.5% | 64.2–74.3 |
| Visited dentist or dental clinic in the past year among adults | 60.4% | 56.7–64.1 |
| Mammography use among women aged 50-74 years | 70.8% | 62.2–78.6 |
Health Risk BehaviorsCDC PLACES 2022 / 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Binge drinking among adults | 12.8% | 10.5–15.6 |
| Current cigarette smoking among adults | 14.9% | 12.2–17.9 |
| No leisure-time physical activity among adults | 29.7% | 24.5–35.3 |
| Short sleep duration among adults | 34.6% | 27.7–41.8 |
Health StatusCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor self-rated health status among adults | 24.4% | 20.8–28.2 |
| Frequent mental distress among adults | 14.8% | 13.1–16.8 |
| Frequent physical distress among adults | 16.9% | 14.7–19.3 |
DisabilityCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Cognitive disability among adults | 13.4% | 11.5–15.4 |
| Any disability among adults | 38.4% | 33.2–43.6 |
| Hearing disability among adults | 12.0% | 10.5–13.5 |
| Independent living disability among adults | 9.6% | 8.2–11.0 |
| Mobility disability among adults | 21.8% | 18.6–25.1 |
| Self-care disability among adults | 5.3% | 4.5–6.1 |
| Vision disability among adults | 6.3% | 5.5–7.3 |
Community & economyCensus ACS 5-Year · 2024 release · observed
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | TX median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poverty rate | 17.7% | 10.6% (3.1–25.8%) n=32,364 | 12.4% (3.5–26.4%) n=1,869 |
| Uninsured 18–64 | 30.4% | 9.0% (1.5–24.3%) n=32,286 | 22.3% (8.2–41.5%) n=1,862 |
| No HS diploma (25+) | 7.1% | 7.9% (1.8–20.7%) n=32,505 | 12.2% (2.5–30.0%) n=1,881 |
| Bachelor's or higher (25+) | 25.2% | 23.3% (9.2–53.6%) n=32,505 | 21.9% (9.0–51.4%) n=1,881 |
| Unemployment rate (16+) | 0.0% | 3.9% (0.0–9.8%) n=32,274 | 4.2% (0.0–9.4%) n=1,865 |
| Households without a vehicle | 8.3% | 3.9% (0.0–12.5%) n=32,322 | 3.7% (0.0–10.8%) n=1,868 |
| Broadband subscription | 79.6% | 89.3% (75.1–97.1%) n=32,322 | 89.2% (75.0–97.3%) n=1,868 |
| Housing cost burden (≥30% income) | 15.8% | 23.7% (10.6–40.0%) n=32,322 | 26.2% (8.8–40.3%) n=1,868 |
| Homeownership rate | 73.2% | 78.7% (51.7–94.0%) n=32,322 | 75.0% (46.4–92.3%) n=1,868 |
| Crowded housing (>1 per room) | 2.6% | 1.3% (0.0–6.3%) n=32,322 | 3.1% (0.0–9.0%) n=1,868 |
| Foreign-born population | 0.4% | 2.6% (0.0–18.6%) n=32,553 | 8.1% (0.1–26.4%) n=1,886 |
| Single-parent households | 83.7% | 53.6% (37.3–74.1%) n=32,087 | 48.5% (34.3–70.6%) n=1,861 |
| Population 65+ | 39.3% | 19.4% (10.8–33.6%) n=32,553 | 16.1% (8.6–30.1%) n=1,886 |
| Median age | 60.4 yr | 42.2 yr (33.0–56.3) n=32,292 | 38.3 yr (30.9–52.3) n=1,866 |
| Median household income | $64,418 | $72,070 ($46,039–$118,707) n=30,318 | $69,983 ($46,006–$112,413) n=1,737 |
| Median home value | $319,700 | $222,200 ($100,300–$579,820) n=30,049 | $210,500 ($97,060–$429,760) n=1,693 |
| Median gross rent | $651 | $1,021 ($677–$1,912) n=25,670 | $1,154 ($764–$1,815) n=1,508 |
Life expectancyNCHS / RWJF USALEEP · model-based
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | TX median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy at birth | 78.4 yr ± 2.84 | 78.9 yr (74.7–82.8) n=31,308 | 78.2 yr (75.1–81.7) n=1,772 |
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 2.84 years of 78.4, 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