The Hardest Places to Live in America???

Tonight, my entry is not about chronic illness, EDS or any of the normal things.  Tonight, I want to talk about home.

I read a news story about some of the most difficult places to live in the United States.  My small corner of Kentucky was on that list.  They considered the median income, the life expectancy and unemployment rates.  So, I'm going to talk about this.  After all, who is a better resource for the truth than someone who has lived here for 37 years, someone who has written many community assessments in grad school about this region?  Many people in other parts of the world do not understand the culture, the lifestyle, here.  They do not understand how Appalachia has been suppressed, deprived and forgotten. 

First, lets talk about the income.  Now, the median income in Jackson county, Kentucky varies, according to the source that you use.  According to the Census Bureau, the median income is about $22,000.  Lets give you something to compare that to.  The median income in New York City is $51,000.  Our average income is low because there are few employment opportunities.  In Jackson county there are a couple of very small industrial settings, and the occasional gas station and restaurant.  Because of the isolation of these mountain towns, industry does not settle here.  If they do settle, there is no competition so they can keep wages at or near minimum wage.  Here you have the cause of low median income AND high unemployment rates.

If the median income is that low, then of course the life expectancy is lower.  The people in this area are not as healthy.  If you are budgeting $22,000 to pay your bills, your mortgage, insurance, medical bills, etc, then how do you afford healthy food and proper medical care? Our utilities are not cheaper, our medical bills are not cheaper and our insurance is actually higher!  Food is not cheaper here.  Some things are even higher because of location.  So, lets say you have a family to feed on an extreme budget.  A bag of oranges is $7 and a bag of chips is $2, a gallon of 1% milk is $3.50 and a gallon of kool aid is just over $1.  Your ultimate priority is to ensure your children have food and drinks.  You don't want them to be hungry.  The fruit and milk would cost just over $10.  The chips and kool aid are just over $3.  What choice will you make?  Buying the unhealthy choice means that you're budget will stretch a little farther to cover a little more food.  A poor parent can't worry about the long term consequences.  They live in the Now.

These same people may have a more difficult time finding ways to exercise.  There are no gyms, no walking tracks, no YMCA.  You find a way to work out at home, usually.  This is more difficult.  Even walking is a difficult option.  Many of us live on single lane country roads.  You may be taking a huge risk walking out those.

Health care....if you can't afford groceries, you probably can't afford doctor's bills.  Many have no insurance.  I don't care what the Affordable Care Act says.  It is not an affordable option for these people.  Many, many times I cared for patients in the hospital who were admitted and readmitted because they had no way to pay for the medications that they needed to remain healthy and functional.

I could write a book about the problems the people of Appalachia face.  It is a difficult place to live.  But, most of us don't know that.  This is home, this is the life that we know.  We are a hardy people.  And, let me tell you, there is plenty that this story doesn't tell you.  It doesn't tell you about the clean fresh air that we have here.  It doesn't tell you about the open fields, the beautiful forests, the lakes and rivers.  It doesn't tell you about families that stick together, friends that sit on front porches or neighbors that check on each other. This story paints the typical portrait of Eastern Kentucky.  I've been a few places and, let me say, no where is like Jackson county.  This is home.  So, maybe, instead of trashing and bashing our area, people could take a little time to understand it.  And, maybe something as big as the New York Times could help find ways to help, to spotlight us and our plight, not stereotype us.