For my next foray into the HRSA zip code data set I thought I would take a look at the correlation between chlamydia and mortality rates in Cambria and Somerset Counties. The graph above shows a strong positive correlation between zip code chlamydia rates and all cause mortality rates.
This means that as chlamydia rates increase at the zip code level so do mortality rates. This relationship accounts for 59.5% of the variability. If the correlation accounted for 100% of the variability, the graph above would look like the graph below.
Explaining what the correlation between chlamydia and mortality means
This does not necessarily mean that people are dying from chlamydia here. It means that mortality and chlamydia are found together in Cambria and Somerset zip codes. The zip codes with the highest chlamydia and mortality rates are the same ones with the highest preventable hospital stays: 15469 (Normalville, PA), 15464 (Mill Run, PA) and 15459 (Markleysburg, PA). These zip codes straddle Fayette County which also has a high mortality rate.
Overall Trends in Chlamydia Rates in Cambria and Somerset
While the rates for Chlamydia are getting worse in Cambria County high they are still well below the U.S. and Pennsylvania rates. Even the 3 highest zip code chlamydia rates (334/100,000) in the 2 counties are below the U.S. (495.5/100,000) and Pennsylvania (409.8/100,000) rates. The graph below shows that the chlamydia rate has hardly changed for Somerset County.
Conclusions
Chlamydia rates are also strongly positively correlated with drug mortality, preterm birth, and preventable hospital stay rates. Consequently, the chlamydia rates have a weak positive correlation with poor mental health and violent crime. At the same time they are weakly negatively correlated with uninsured rates. These suggest that the correlation between chlamydia and mortality rates is part of a cluster of social and medical factors that contribute to mortality.