Every three years, Dallas County Health and Human Services and Parkland Health release a community health needs assessment. The findings from the report help inform decisions about where resources, programs and public health investments are needed most across the county.
The assessment covers everything from access to care, leading causes of death, rates of asthma and immunizations to breakdowns of how different ZIP codes across the county are doing. The report, which is over 200 pages long, also examines how social and economic factors — including housing, transportation and food access — shape health outcomes across Dallas County neighborhoods.
The latest 2025 assessment shows that there’s still progress to be made.
The report shows that life expectancy still varies dramatically depending on where in Dallas County residents live. In ZIP code 75210 in South Dallas, the life expectancy is 67.8 years. Meanwhile, residents in the 75205 ZIP code in Highland Park have the county’s highest life expectancy at 85 years.
That is a 17-year gap between the county’s shortest and longest life expectancies. While it is a slightly smaller divide than the 22-year gap documented in the previous report from 2022, the numbers do not necessarily mean communities with lower life expectancy are seeing improvements or gaining more equitable access to care.
At the same time, health disparities are not confined neatly to neighborhood boundaries. Conditions can vary block by block, and there can be pockets of deep need even within the same ZIP code.
Access to healthcare is only one piece of the puzzle.
Residents who lack reliable transportation may struggle to make medical appointments. Families without stable housing or access to healthy food often face greater risks for chronic illness. Those with financial burdens may have to make difficult choices between healthcare or food.
It’s important to continue to invest in creative solutions that expand access to food, transportation, job training and preventative care to meet people where they are. When residents can access those resources consistently, they are more likely to seek medical care before conditions become severe or life-threatening.
The report also showed that we need to do better connecting people with mental health services.
We’ve known that the U.S. is experiencing a mental health crisis, and the report cited behavioral and mental wellness as the top priority for the county. According to the report, about 14% of individuals reported poor mental health in the previous 14 days compared to 10% in the previous assessment.
Mental health support, in addition to physical care, will continue to be important.
The community health needs assessment is more than a collection of statistics. It can serve as a roadmap for where the county must focus its attention in the years ahead.
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