ZIP code
81126
in Chama, ColoradoPopulation 506
47.00/ 100
Ranked #20,159 of 32,066 US ZIPs (bottom 37%)
Ranked #428 of 502 Colorado ZIPs (bottom 14.8%)
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.
Energy-cost burden
7.5%
in the top 0.9% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST99thUS99thDefinition & 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 ›Uninsured (under 65)
24.7%
in the top 2.4% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST99thUS98thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults aged 18–64 with no current health-insurance coverage.
Full methodology ›Distance to a hazardous-chemical facility
44.3 mi
in the top 1.0% nationally
Higher is healthier
ST99thUS99thDefinition & source ›
The distance in miles from this ZIP’s edge to the nearest facility that handles enough hazardous chemicals to require an EPA risk-management plan for accidental releases.
Full methodology ›Distance to a nursing home
32.2 mi
in the top 1.4% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST98thUS99thDefinition & source ›
The distance in miles from this ZIP’s edge to the nearest Medicare- or Medicaid-certified nursing home.
Full methodology ›Distance to an emergency room
33.8 mi
in the top 1.5% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST99thUS99thDefinition & source ›
The distance in miles from this ZIP’s edge to the nearest Medicare-certified hospital with an emergency room.
Full methodology ›Vision disability
10.4%
in the top 4.1% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST99thUS96thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who are blind or have serious difficulty seeing even with glasses.
Full methodology ›Humid extreme heat
2.8 days/year
in the bottom 1.7% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST19thUS2ndDefinition & source ›
The average number of days per year when modeled heat stress — temperature, humidity, sun, and wind combined — reaches levels hard on the body outdoors.
Full methodology ›Transportation noise
0.00%
at the national minimum
Lower is healthier
ST1stUS1stDefinition & source ›
The modeled share of residents exposed to average road, rail, and aviation noise at or above 55 decibels — a noticeable background presence.
Full methodology ›Air-toxics cancer risk
10 per million
in the bottom 2.8% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST17thUS3rdDefinition & 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 ›Diabetes
19.7%
in the top 4.2% nationally
Lower is healthier
ST99thUS96thDefinition & source ›
The estimated share of adults who have been diagnosed with diabetes.
Full methodology ›Cross-source signals
Health need and barriers to care documented here
On our reading, this ZIP code carries the overlap at its acute level: acute means at least three of the six health-need readings and at least three of the six access barriers apply to the same place.
These are two separate readings of public data that both apply to this place — never a claim that one causes the other, never a severity score, and never a statement about any person who lives here.
Health need documented here
- People without health insurance
- Adults reporting fair or poor health
- Chronic conditions
Barriers to reaching care
- Distance to the nearest emergency room
- Thin local supply of doctors
- Thin local supply of pharmacies
A reading appears below only where this ZIP code is among the most-affected 10% of US ZIP codes on it — one national bar, the same for every ZIP in the country.
See the full care-deserts analysis →The read
In its overall standing, Chama, Colorado (ZIP 81126) lands in the bottom 37% nationally (20,159th) and the bottom 14.8% of Colorado (428th), based on limited data; treat as directional.
This area's defining measures are easy to pick out: modeled energy burden resides in the top 0.9% nationally, modeled uninsured settles in the top 2.4% nationally, and distance to a nursing home is in the top 1.4% nationally. Distance to an emergency room sits in the top 1.5% nationally, modeled vision disability lands in the top 4.1% nationally, and modeled diabetes lies in the top 4.2% nationally. On the brighter side, distance to a hazardous-chemical facility stands in the top 1.0% nationally, and modeled humid heat rests in the bottom 1.7% nationally. Modeled transportation noise registers at the national minimum, and air-toxics cancer risk resides in the bottom 2.8% nationally.
Put simply, 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. Air-toxics cancer risk is a modeled EPA estimate of added lifetime cancer risk from breathing outdoor air, per million people. Energy burden is the share of household income that goes to home energy bills. On the overall standing, ZIP 81151, about 6.3 miles away, ranks healthier. In the round, the area also shows documented health need overlapping with barriers to reaching care, sitting in the most-affected 10% of US ZIP codes on several need measures and several access barriers.
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
Environmental Hazard
in the top 0.5%
14%
Risk Behavior
healthier than 80%
11%
Mental Health
healthier than 92%
8%
Climate / Disaster RiskPartial
in the top 0.00%
5%
Holding it back
Chronic Disease Burden
healthier than 37%
21%
Social Need / SDOH
healthier than 2%
16%
Preventive Care
healthier than 9%
13%
Disability
healthier than 11%
7%
Healthcare Access
healthier than 7%
5%
Lifting this score
Environmental Hazard
in the top 0.8%
14%
Mental Health
in the top 0.3%
8%
Climate / Disaster RiskPartial
in the top 0.00%
5%
About typical
Risk Behavior
healthier than 40%
11%
Holding it back
Chronic Disease Burden
healthier than 8%
21%
Social Need / SDOH
in the bottom 0.2%
16%
Preventive Care
healthier than 17%
13%
Disability
in the bottom 0.8%
7%
Healthcare Access
healthier than 12%
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 ›
Nearby & similar ZIPs
Editorially selected — see how this ZIP compares to nearby and similar places.
Nearby
81152
Coloradoshares a border
Score 46.39
Closest healthier
81151
Coloradoabout 6.3 mi away
Score 48.41
Similar health profile
87722
New Mexico96% similar profile
Score 51.09
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 | 30.5% | 26.7–34.5 |
| High blood pressure among adults | 38.6% | 33.9–43.3 |
| Cancer (non-skin) or melanoma among adults | 8.0% | 7.1–8.8 |
| Current asthma among adults | 9.9% | 8.6–11.2 |
| Coronary heart disease among adults | 9.6% | 8.2–11.1 |
| Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among adults | 7.3% | 5.9–8.9 |
| Depression among adults | 17.7% | 14.8–21.1 |
| Diagnosed diabetes among adults | 19.7% | 16.9–22.8 |
| High cholesterol among adults who have ever been screened | 39.7% | 34.9–44.7 |
| Obesity among adults | 33.4% | 25.2–42.4 |
| Stroke among adults | 5.0% | 4.3–5.8 |
| All teeth lost among adults aged >=65 years | 11.1% | 8.7–13.8 |
PreventionCDC PLACES 2022 / 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Current lack of health insurance among adults aged 18-64 years | 24.7% | 19.3–30.8 |
| Taking medicine to control high blood pressure among adults with high blood pressure | 78.6% | 75.3–81.5 |
| Visits to doctor for routine checkup within the past year among adults | 75.7% | 71.7–79.3 |
| Cholesterol screening among adults | 87.5% | 85.3–89.5 |
| Colorectal cancer screening among adults aged 45–75 years | 61.2% | 55.5–66.9 |
| Visited dentist or dental clinic in the past year among adults | 51.6% | 47.4–55.6 |
| Mammography use among women aged 50-74 years | 67.0% | 57.6–75.7 |
Health Risk BehaviorsCDC PLACES 2022 / 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Binge drinking among adults | 11.9% | 9.6–14.5 |
| Current cigarette smoking among adults | 11.8% | 9.5–14.6 |
| No leisure-time physical activity among adults | 32.9% | 26.9–39.6 |
| Short sleep duration among adults | 32.3% | 25.5–39.9 |
Health StatusCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor self-rated health status among adults | 29.4% | 24.8–34.6 |
| Frequent mental distress among adults | 14.1% | 12.2–16.3 |
| Frequent physical distress among adults | 18.0% | 15.3–20.9 |
DisabilityCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
| Measure | Crude prevalence | 95% CI |
|---|---|---|
| Cognitive disability among adults | 15.9% | 13.5–18.7 |
| Any disability among adults | 39.4% | 33.6–45.4 |
| Hearing disability among adults | 10.9% | 9.4–12.6 |
| Independent living disability among adults | 9.6% | 8.0–11.4 |
| Mobility disability among adults | 21.5% | 17.9–25.5 |
| Self-care disability among adults | 6.4% | 5.3–7.8 |
| Vision disability among adults | 10.4% | 8.8–12.3 |
Community & economyCensus ACS 5-Year · 2024 release · observed
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | CO median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Poverty rate | 10.9% | 10.6% (3.1–25.8%) n=32,364 | 9.1% (2.3–21.1%) n=507 |
| Uninsured 18–64 | 24.7% | 9.0% (1.5–24.3%) n=32,286 | 9.9% (1.9–21.6%) n=503 |
| No HS diploma (25+) | 10.9% | 7.9% (1.8–20.7%) n=32,505 | 5.0% (0.0–16.3%) n=508 |
| Bachelor's or higher (25+) | 26.8% | 23.3% (9.2–53.6%) n=32,505 | 33.9% (14.8–65.1%) n=508 |
| Unemployment rate (16+) | 0.0% | 3.9% (0.0–9.8%) n=32,274 | 3.6% (0.0–7.7%) n=505 |
| Households without a vehicle | 2.9% | 3.9% (0.0–12.5%) n=32,322 | 2.9% (0.0–9.4%) n=507 |
| Broadband subscription | 90.0% | 89.3% (75.1–97.1%) n=32,322 | 92.5% (79.4–98.7%) n=507 |
| Housing cost burden (≥30% income) | 22.9% | 23.7% (10.6–40.0%) n=32,322 | 29.9% (15.9–42.9%) n=507 |
| Homeownership rate | 85.0% | 78.7% (51.7–94.0%) n=32,322 | 74.7% (51.5–93.8%) n=507 |
| Crowded housing (>1 per room) | 0.0% | 1.3% (0.0–6.3%) n=32,322 | 1.1% (0.0–5.3%) n=507 |
| Foreign-born population | 4.2% | 2.6% (0.0–18.6%) n=32,553 | 4.8% (0.0–14.6%) n=508 |
| Single-parent households | 84.0% | 53.6% (37.3–74.1%) n=32,087 | 54.4% (40.1–81.1%) n=500 |
| Population 65+ | 33.8% | 19.4% (10.8–33.6%) n=32,553 | 18.6% (9.2–36.4%) n=508 |
| Median age | 40.0 yr | 42.2 yr (33.0–56.3) n=32,292 | 41.0 yr (33.4–58.2) n=502 |
| Median household income | $52,870 | $72,070 ($46,039–$118,707) n=30,318 | $84,602 ($48,743–$134,919) n=470 |
| Median home value | $170,400 | $222,200 ($100,300–$579,820) n=30,049 | $458,400 ($191,360–$800,020) n=469 |
| Median gross rent | — | $1,021 ($677–$1,912) n=25,670 | $1,534 ($828–$2,196) n=401 |
Life expectancyNCHS / RWJF USALEEP · model-based
| Measure | Value | US median (p10–p90) | CO median (p10–p90) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life expectancy at birth | 78.9 yr ± 1.23 | 78.9 yr (74.7–82.8) n=31,308 | 80.4 yr (76.8–83.2) n=466 |
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 1.23 years of 78.9, 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