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ZIP code

99840

in Skagway, AlaskaPopulation 1,244

ZipVitals Score
How is the ZipVitals Score calculated? →

54.48/ 100

Ranked #10,105 of 32,066 US ZIPs (top 32%)

Ranked #34 of 211 Alaska ZIPs (top 16%)

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

Broad coverage across health domains

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.

Industrial-pollution burden

in the bottom 0.2% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST1st
US1st
Definition & 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 ›

Air-toxics cancer risk

8 per million

in the bottom 0.2% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST29th
US1st
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 ›

Distance to a nursing home

73.1 mi

in the top 0.4% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST50th
US99th
Definition & source ›

The distance in miles from this ZIP’s edge to the nearest Medicare- or Medicaid-certified nursing home.

Full methodology ›

Distance to a hazardous-chemical facility

76.2 mi

in the top 0.5% nationally

Higher is healthier

ST51st
US99th
Definition & 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 Superfund site

273.4 mi

in the top 0.5% nationally

Higher is healthier

ST56th
US99th
Definition & source ›

The distance in miles from this ZIP’s edge to the nearest Superfund site — an abandoned or uncontrolled hazardous-waste site the EPA has listed for cleanup.

Full methodology ›

Distance to an emergency room

73.2 mi

in the top 0.5% nationally

Lower is healthier

ST40th
US99th
Definition & source ›

The distance in miles from this ZIP’s edge to the nearest Medicare-certified hospital with an emergency room.

Full methodology ›

Walkability

0.31 intersections/sq mi

in the bottom 0.7% nationally

Higher is healthier

ST35th
US1st
Definition & source ›

The number of street intersections per square mile — a standard street-connectivity measure; denser networks correlate with more walkable neighborhoods.

Full methodology ›

Mammography

64.8%

in the bottom 2.7% nationally

Higher is healthier

ST71st
US3rd
Definition & source ›

The estimated share of women aged 50–74 who had a mammogram within the past two years.

Full methodology ›

Fatal road crashes

0 per 100,000 residents per year

at the national minimum

Lower is healthier

ST1st
US1st
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 ›

Park land

30.4%

in the top 4.6% nationally

Higher is healthier

ST89th
US95th
Definition & source ›

The share of this ZIP’s land area that is public parkland.

Full methodology ›

The read

On the composite measure, Skagway, Alaska (ZIP 99840) stands in the top 32% healthiest ZIPs nationally (10,105th) and the top 16% of Alaska (34th), based on limited data; treat as directional.

continue reading

A profile of give and take, with clear readings each way: modeled industrial-pollution burden settles in the bottom 0.2% nationally, and air-toxics cancer risk rests in the bottom 0.2% nationally. Distance to a hazardous-chemical facility lands in the top 0.5% nationally, and distance to a Superfund site settles in the top 0.5% nationally. Fatal road crashes rests at the national minimum, and park land lands in the top 4.6% nationally. On the other side, distance to a nursing home settles in the top 0.4% nationally, distance to an emergency room rests in the top 0.5% nationally, and walkability lands in the bottom 0.7% nationally. Modeled mammography settles in the bottom 2.7% nationally.

Set beside the wider area around it, distance to a nursing home runs far higher than the surrounding ZIPs on this measure. For clarity, industrial-pollution burden is the EPA's modeled screening score weighting industrial chemical releases by their toxicity and how many people live nearby. Air-toxics cancer risk is a modeled EPA estimate of added lifetime cancer risk from breathing outdoor air, per million people. 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. ZIP 99827, just across the boundary, ranks better overall among the ZIPs nearby.

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

Chronic Disease Burden

healthier than 85%

22%

Environmental HazardPartial

in the top 0.00%

14%

Mental Health

healthier than 76%

9%

Disability

healthier than 81%

8%

Holding it back

Social Need / SDOH

healthier than 28%

17%

Preventive Care

healthier than 6%

13%

Risk Behavior

healthier than 40%

11%

Healthcare Access

in the bottom 0.8%

6%

No data: Climate / Disaster Risk — 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 / 2023 · BRFSS
MeasureCrude prevalence95% CI
Arthritis among adults23.1%20.0–26.4
High blood pressure among adults31.4%27.2–35.8
Cancer (non-skin) or melanoma among adults7.5%6.7–8.4
Current asthma among adults10.2%8.9–11.5
Coronary heart disease among adults5.3%4.6–6.1
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease among adults6.0%5.0–7.2
Depression among adults20.8%17.4–24.4
Diagnosed diabetes among adults8.2%6.9–9.7
High cholesterol among adults who have ever been screened33.0%28.7–37.3
Obesity among adults36.4%28.0–45.4
Stroke among adults2.8%2.5–3.2
All teeth lost among adults aged >=65 years9.0%7.2–11.2
PreventionCDC PLACES 2022 / 2023 · BRFSS
MeasureCrude prevalence95% CI
Current lack of health insurance among adults aged 18-64 years8.8%6.8–11.2
Taking medicine to control high blood pressure among adults with high blood pressure67.5%63.3–71.3
Visits to doctor for routine checkup within the past year among adults67.1%62.3–71.6
Cholesterol screening among adults81.9%78.9–84.4
Colorectal cancer screening among adults aged 45–75 years59.2%53.6–64.8
Visited dentist or dental clinic in the past year among adults58.7%54.7–62.5
Mammography use among women aged 50-74 years64.8%55.2–73.5
Health Risk BehaviorsCDC PLACES 2022 / 2023 · BRFSS
MeasureCrude prevalence95% CI
Binge drinking among adults19.4%16.1–23.2
Current cigarette smoking among adults16.2%13.0–20.0
No leisure-time physical activity among adults19.9%15.9–24.6
Short sleep duration among adults36.3%29.3–43.8
Health StatusCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
MeasureCrude prevalence95% CI
Fair or poor self-rated health status among adults16.3%13.6–19.6
Frequent mental distress among adults15.4%13.3–17.7
Frequent physical distress among adults12.5%10.8–14.6
DisabilityCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
MeasureCrude prevalence95% CI
Cognitive disability among adults13.0%11.0–15.4
Any disability among adults26.7%22.4–31.6
Hearing disability among adults6.9%6.0–7.9
Independent living disability among adults6.8%5.8–8.0
Mobility disability among adults10.6%8.9–12.7
Self-care disability among adults3.0%2.6–3.6
Vision disability among adults3.8%3.3–4.4
Health-Related Social NeedsCDC PLACES 2023 · BRFSS
MeasureCrude prevalence95% CI
Lack of social and emotional support among adults23.3%19.4–27.4
Food insecurity in the past 12 months among adults11.2%8.7–14.2
Received food stamps in the past 12 months among adults7.9%5.9–10.3
Housing insecurity in the past 12 months among adults10.0%7.9–12.3
Lack of reliable transportation in the past 12 months among adults6.9%5.7–8.3
Loneliness among adults30.7%25.4–36.2
Utility services shut-off threat in the past 12 months among adults6.8%5.4–8.2
Community & economyCensus ACS 5-Year · 2024 release · observed
MeasureValueUS median (p10–p90)AK median (p10–p90)
Poverty rate5.9%10.6% (3.1–25.8%) n=32,36413.7% (1.4–38.0%) n=230
Uninsured 18–6410.0%9.0% (1.5–24.3%) n=32,28620.8% (8.5–50.0%) n=225
No HS diploma (25+)6.5%7.9% (1.8–20.7%) n=32,5058.4% (1.4–25.1%) n=230
Bachelor's or higher (25+)28.5%23.3% (9.2–53.6%) n=32,50515.0% (0.0–37.4%) n=230
Unemployment rate (16+)9.1%3.9% (0.0–9.8%) n=32,2748.6% (0.0–29.5%) n=226
Households without a vehicle10.0%3.9% (0.0–12.5%) n=32,32231.1% (1.0–95.5%) n=228
Broadband subscription93.3%89.3% (75.1–97.1%) n=32,32284.8% (49.6–96.0%) n=228
Housing cost burden (≥30% income)22.9%23.7% (10.6–40.0%) n=32,32217.0% (0.0–33.2%) n=228
Homeownership rate70.9%78.7% (51.7–94.0%) n=32,32271.7% (45.5–94.4%) n=228
Crowded housing (>1 per room)4.7%1.3% (0.0–6.3%) n=32,3228.5% (0.0–48.6%) n=228
Foreign-born population15.9%2.6% (0.0–18.6%) n=32,5530.8% (0.0–11.1%) n=231
Single-parent households45.2%53.6% (37.3–74.1%) n=32,08744.2% (18.7–68.2%) n=221
Population 65+18.2%19.4% (10.8–33.6%) n=32,55312.7% (3.0–29.7%) n=231
Median age41.2 yr42.2 yr (33.0–56.3) n=32,29235.7 yr (22.6–53.6) n=226
Median household income$81,136$72,070 ($46,039–$118,707) n=30,318$66,823 ($39,905–$108,850) n=197
Median home value$435,400$222,200 ($100,300–$579,820) n=30,049$177,500 ($66,830–$395,940) n=178
Median gross rent$1,280$1,021 ($677–$1,912) n=25,670$1,078 ($688–$1,571) n=143
Life expectancyNCHS / RWJF USALEEP · model-based
MeasureValueUS median (p10–p90)AK median (p10–p90)
Life expectancy at birth80.8 yr ± 1.8078.9 yr (74.7–82.8) n=31,30879.0 yr (75.1–84.7) n=222

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 1.80 years of 80.8, 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