County health data
Lincoln County, SD
CDC PLACES estimates diabetes at 8.8% of adults in Lincoln County (South Dakota: 11.8%). This county has 4 HRSA shortage designations (1 area or population, 3 facility) and 2 hospitals.
License: a US government work, in the public domain (Public Domain Mark 1.0).
For help with food, housing, utilities, or rides in Lincoln County, call 211 or visit 211.org.
Health measures compared with the state
33 measures for adults in Lincoln County (about 54,161 adults). 24 have a South Dakota figure from the same survey.
Largest differences from the South Dakota figure: no leisure-time physical activity 17.6% vs 25.7% (-8.1 points), high blood pressure 28.9% vs 35.2% (-6.3 points), and fair or poor health 12.3% vs 18.0% (-5.7 points).
Health Outcomes
| Measure | Lincoln County | South Dakota | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arthritis | 22.0% | 26.2% | 26.3% | 2023 |
| High blood pressure | 28.9% | 35.2% | 34.0% | 2023 |
| Cancer, excluding non-melanoma skin cancer | 8.8% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Current asthma | 9.5% | 9.7% | 10.2% | 2023 |
| Coronary heart disease | 5.1% | 3.9% | 4.0% | 2023 |
| COPD | 4.8% | 6.4% | 6.3% | 2023 |
| Depression | 19.7% | 23.1% | 21.8% | 2023 |
| Diagnosed diabetes | 8.8% | 11.8% | 11.8% | 2023 |
| High cholesterol, adults ever screened | 31.1% | 35.5% | 37.2% | 2023 |
| Obesity | 34.9% | 36.0% | 34.4% | 2023 |
| Stroke | 2.6% | 3.4% | 3.3% | 2023 |
| All teeth lost, ages 65 and older | 11.9% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
Prevention
| Measure | Lincoln County | South Dakota | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No health insurance, ages 18 to 64 | 6.7% | 10.2% | 9.3% | 2023 |
| Taking blood pressure medicine, adults with high blood pressure | 75.2% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Routine checkup in the past year | 77.4% | 78.2% | 78.4% | 2023 |
| Cholesterol screening | 85.9% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Colorectal cancer screening, ages 45 to 75 | 69.8% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
| Dental visit in the past year | 76.4% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
| Mammogram, women ages 50 to 74 | 79.6% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
Health Risk Behaviors
| Measure | Lincoln County | South Dakota | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drinking | 20.4% | 19.8% | 15.1% | 2023 |
| Current smoking | 11.6% | 15.2% | 12.1% | 2023 |
| No leisure-time physical activity | 17.6% | 25.7% | 24.5% | 2023 |
| Short sleep | 26.6% | n/a | n/a | 2022 |
Health Status
| Measure | Lincoln County | South Dakota | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fair or poor health | 12.3% | 18.0% | 18.5% | 2023 |
| Frequent mental distress | 13.6% | 14.3% | 15.4% | 2023 |
| Frequent physical distress | 9.7% | 10.2% | 12.6% | 2023 |
Disability
| Measure | Lincoln County | South Dakota | US | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cognitive disability | 11.4% | 14.3% | 13.7% | 2023 |
| Any disability | 23.8% | n/a | n/a | 2023 |
| Hearing disability | 6.5% | 8.2% | 7.4% | 2023 |
| Independent living disability | 5.7% | 8.6% | 7.8% | 2023 |
| Mobility disability | 9.0% | 13.1% | 13.4% | 2023 |
| Self-care disability | 2.4% | 3.9% | 3.7% | 2023 |
| Vision disability | 3.2% | 3.6% | 5.0% | 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
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Health professional shortage areas
HRSA, the federal Health Resources and Services Administration, designates Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSAs): places, population groups, or facilities with too few primary care, mental health, or dental providers. An area designation covers a geographic area or a population group, such as low-income residents. A facility designation covers one site, such as a health center or clinic. Each has a score from 0 to 25 (0 to 26 for dental); a higher score means greater need.
HRSA lists 4 designated shortage rows in Lincoln County: primary care 1 (highest score 14), mental health 2 (highest score 17), and dental 1 (highest score 15). 1 covers a geographic area or population group; the other 3 are facility designations.
| Discipline | Area or population | Facility | Highest score |
|---|---|---|---|
| primary care | 0 | 1 | 14 |
| mental health | 1 | 1 | 17 |
| dental | 0 | 1 | 15 |
Area and population designations
| Designation | Discipline | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| LI-South Eastern Behavioral Healthcare | mental health | HPSA Population | 17 |
Facility designations (3)
| Designation | Discipline | Type | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| SANFORD CLINIC LENNOX | mental health | Rural Health Clinic | 16 |
| SANFORD CLINIC LENNOX | dental | Rural Health Clinic | 15 |
| SANFORD CLINIC LENNOX | primary care | Rural Health Clinic | 14 |
In the Type column, an HPSA Population designation covers one group of people in the area. In HRSA's designation names, LI means low-income residents.
Source: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas, as of October 14, 2026. Publisher page
Hospitals and readmission rates
CMS Care Compare lists 2 acute care or critical access hospitals in Lincoln County, 1 of them critical access. The CMS file in this snapshot does not compare these rates with the national rate, so none is marked better or worse.
| Hospital | City | Stars | Heart failure | Pneumonia | COPD | Heart attack | Hip or knee |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AVERA HEART HOSPITAL OF SOUTH DAKOTA | SIOUX FALLS | 5 | 20.1% | n/a | n/a | 12.5% | n/a |
| SANFORD CANTON-INWOOD MEDICAL CENTER - CAHCritical access | CANTON | n/a | n/a | 17.6% | n/a | n/a | 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
South Dakota rural health plan
South Dakota Rural Health Transformation Plan
Initiatives, as the state's abstract names them (page 62):
- Connecting Technology & Data
- Advancing the Rural Workforce
- Keeping Healthcare Local and Strong
- Transforming Systems for Sustainability
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
Neighboring counties
Medicare plans in Lincoln County, SD
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 accesshospitals 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