County health data
Buchanan County, MO
CDC PLACES estimates diabetes at 13.0% of adults in Buchanan County (Missouri: 12.3%). This county has 7 HRSA shortage designations, 1 hospital, and 8 health center sites.
License. US government work, Public Domain Mark 1.0.
For help with food, housing, utilities, or rides in Buchanan County, call 211 or visit 211.org.
Health measures compared with the state
40 measures for adults in Buchanan County (about 64,505 adults). 24 have a Missouri figure from the same survey.
Largest differences from the Missouri figure: obesity 42.9% vs 35.3% (+7.6 points), no leisure-time physical activity 32.7% vs 28.1% (+4.6 points), and fair or poor health 23.4% vs 19.9% (+3.5 points).
Health Outcomes
| Measure | Buchanan County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arthritis | 29.6% | 29.1% | 26.3% | 2023 |
| High blood pressure | 37.9% | 36.2% | 34.0% | 2023 |
| Cancer, excluding non-melanoma skin cancer | 8.5% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Current asthma | 10.9% | 9.9% | 10.2% | 2023 |
| Coronary heart disease | 7.6% | 4.6% | 4.0% | 2023 |
| COPD | 9.3% | 8.5% | 6.3% | 2023 |
| Depression | 24.8% | 23.1% | 21.8% | 2023 |
| Diagnosed diabetes | 13.0% | 12.3% | 11.8% | 2023 |
| High cholesterol, adults ever screened | 39.2% | 38.5% | 37.2% | 2023 |
| Obesity | 42.9% | 35.3% | 34.4% | 2023 |
| Stroke | 3.9% | 4.5% | 3.3% | 2023 |
| All teeth lost, ages 65 and older | 24.9% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
Prevention
| Measure | Buchanan County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, ages 18 to 64 | 10.6% | 8.6% | 9.3% | 2023 |
| Taking blood pressure medicine, adults with high blood pressure | 77.4% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Routine checkup in the past year | 77.9% | 79.1% | 78.4% | 2023 |
| Cholesterol screening | 82.8% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Colorectal cancer screening, ages 45 to 75 | 63.1% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
| Dental visit in the past year | 58.7% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
| Mammogram, women ages 50 to 74 | 72.9% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
Health Risk Behaviors
| Measure | Buchanan County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drinking | 15.8% | 16.3% | 15.1% | 2023 |
| Current smoking | 18.6% | 15.3% | 12.1% | 2023 |
| No leisure-time physical activity | 32.7% | 28.1% | 24.5% | 2023 |
| Short sleep | 39.0% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
Health Status
| Measure | Buchanan County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health | 23.4% | 19.9% | 18.5% | 2023 |
| Frequent mental distress | 18.4% | 16.7% | 15.4% | 2023 |
| Frequent physical distress | 15.6% | 14.0% | 12.6% | 2023 |
Disability
| Measure | Buchanan County | Missouri | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cognitive disability | 18.9% | 16.8% | 13.7% | 2023 |
| Any disability | 39.0% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Hearing disability | 9.2% | 9.7% | 7.4% | 2023 |
| Independent living disability | 10.2% | 9.5% | 7.8% | 2023 |
| Mobility disability | 17.5% | 16.6% | 13.4% | 2023 |
| Self-care disability | 4.4% | 4.7% | 3.7% | 2023 |
| Vision disability | 5.9% | 5.9% | 5.0% | 2023 |
Health-Related Social Needs
| Measure | Buchanan County | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Lack of social and emotional support | 19.6% | 2023 |
| Food insecurity in the past year | 16.1% | 2023 |
| Received food stamps in the past year | 13.1% | 2023 |
| Housing insecurity in the past year | 13.3% | 2023 |
| Lack of reliable transportation in the past year | 9.4% | 2023 |
| Loneliness | 30.5% | 2023 |
| Utility shut-off threat in the past year | 10.0% | 2023 |
Source: CDC PLACES county data, as of December 4, 2025. Publisher page
Source: CDC BRFSS prevalence data, as of September 15, 2026. Publisher page
Health professional shortage areas
HRSA lists 7 designated shortage rows in Buchanan County: primary care 3 (highest score 20), mental health 2 (highest score 20), and dental 2 (highest score 23). 3 cover a geographic area or population group; the other 4 are facility designations.
| Discipline | Area or population | Facility | Highest score |
|---|---|---|---|
| primary care | 1 | 2 | 20 |
| mental health | 1 | 1 | 20 |
| dental | 1 | 1 | 23 |
Area and population designations
| Designation | Discipline | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| LI-Buchanan County | primary care | HPSA Population | 18 |
| LI - St. Joseph MHCA #1 | mental health | HPSA Population | 18 |
| LI - Clinton/Buchanan Counties | dental | HPSA Population | 17 |
Facility designations (4)
| Designation | Discipline | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | dental | Federally Qualified Health Center | 23 |
| NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | primary care | Federally Qualified Health Center | 20 |
| NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | mental health | Federally Qualified Health Center | 20 |
| Western Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center | primary care | Correctional Facility | 3 |
Source: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas, as of October 14, 2026. Publisher page
Hospitals and readmission rates
CMS Care Compare lists 1 acute care or critical access hospital in Buchanan County. None has a readmission rate CMS rates worse than the national rate.
| Hospital | City | Stars | Heart failure | Pneumonia | COPD | Heart attack | Hip or knee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MOSAIC LIFE CARE AT ST JOSEPH | SAINT JOSEPH | 4 | 21.8% | 17.5% | 19.0% | 14.8% | n/a |
Each rate is the share of patients readmitted within 30 days of discharge, July 2023 to June 2025. "n/a" means CMS did not publish a rate for that hospital.
Source: CMS Care Compare hospital general information, as of August 13, 2026. Publisher page
Source: CMS Care Compare unplanned hospital visits, as of September 30, 2026. Publisher page
Health centers
8 active health center sites in Buchanan County, run by 2 organizations.
| Site ↑ | Health center | Address | City |
|---|---|---|---|
| Downtown Health Center | NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | 925 Felix St | Saint Joseph 64501 |
| Family Medicine Associates | NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | 2303 Village Dr | Saint Joseph 64506 |
| NHS North End Health Center | NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | 1000 5th Ave | Saint Joseph 64505 |
| Northwest Family Dental and Behavioral Health | NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | 3608 Faraon St | Saint Joseph 64506 |
| Northwest Health Mobile Unit | NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | 2303 Village Dr | Saint Joseph 64506 |
| Northwest Health Services Downtown Health Center | NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | 503 S 6th St | Saint Joseph 64501 |
| South Side Health Center | NORTHWEST HEALTH SERVICES INC | 5001 Lake Ave | Saint Joseph 64504 |
| Swope Health KidsCARE - St. Joseph | Swope Health Services | 711 N 36th St, Suite A | Saint Joseph 64506 |
Source: HRSA health center service delivery and look-alike sites, as of October 14, 2026. Publisher page
Missouri rural health plan
Missouri Transformation of Rural Community Health Care (ToRCH Care) Project
Initiatives, as the state's abstract names them (page 39):
- Regional Coordinating Networks and Hub Activation
- Alternative Payment Models
- Digital backbone
- Rural Health Workforce Programs
- Provider Transformation
CMS says the abstract budgets are illustrative and are not award amounts, so none are shown.
Source: CMS Rural Health Transformation Program state project abstracts, as of December 2025. Publisher page
For health centers, health departments, and nonprofits
Our community need, ready for a grant
Rivvi opens with Buchanan County, MO filled in and writes one cited paragraph and a table: shortage scores, disease rates, and nearby hospitals for this county. Add the other counties you serve.
Write the need statementFree to start. Opens Rivvi, the AI workspace for healthcare teams.
Neighboring counties
Medicare plans in Buchanan County, MO
About this data
County rates are CDC PLACES model-based estimates of adults, built from the CDC BRFSS survey and Census population data. State and US figures are BRFSS survey results for the same year. They are not averages of counties, and small differences may not be meaningful.
Shortage rows are HRSA designations with status Designated. Scores run from 0 to 25 (0 to 26 for dental); a higher score means greater need. Hospitals are acute care and critical access hospitals CMS lists in the county, with 30-day rates of unplanned readmission. Health centers are active HRSA-funded and look-alike sites.
Rural health plan initiatives are copied as the state wrote them. Nothing here is medical advice.
Source: CDC PLACES county data, as of December 4, 2025. Publisher page
Source: CDC BRFSS prevalence data, as of September 15, 2026. Publisher page
Source: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas, as of October 14, 2026. Publisher page