Table 2: Grading the Risk in America's 25 Most Ozone-Polluted Cities

Metropolitan Statistical Areas

Rank 2003

Rank 2002

Rank 2001

Rank 2000

Total Population

14 and Under

65 and Over

Pediatric Asthma

Adult
Asthma

Chronic Bronchitis

Emphysema

Los Angeles-Riverside-Orange County, CA CMSA
 1 1 1 1 16,373,645 3,955,219 1,626,663 258,327 831,760 528,572 162,952
Fresno, CA MSA

 2 3 3 3 922,516 244,351 92,805 16,197 44,810 28,598 9,037
Bakersfield, CA MSA
 3 2 2 2 661,645 176,910 62,054 11,689 31,998 20,330 6,250
Visalia-Tulare-Porterville, CA M
 4 4 4 4 368,021 103,425 35,917 6,871 17,349 11,078 3,503
Houston-Galveston-Brazoria, TX CMSA
 5 5 5 5 4,669,571 1,136,281 360,308 74,988 202,727 147,772 41,960
Sacramento-Yolo, CA CMSA
 6 10 12 11 1,796,857 406,444 203,551 26,911 93,425 60,425 19,841
Merced, CA MSA
 7 7 13 10 210,554 60,546 20,004 4,019 9,808 6,248 1,959
Atlanta, GA MSA
 8 6 6 9 4,112,198 926,251 310,703 60,592 217,423 133,668 37,034
Knoxville, TN MSA
 9 8 9 12 687,249 129,331 92,414 8,586 36,394 24,986 8,687
Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill, NC-SC MSA
 10 9 8 8 1,499,293 322,768 152,648 21,069 71,993 50,778 15,722
Washington-Baltimore, DC-MD-VA-WV PMSA
 11 11 7 7 7,608,070 1,617,956 772,176 106,339 400,151 260,093 81,465
Dallas-Fort Worth, TX CMSA
 12 16 14 14 5,221,801 1,232,855 420,898 80,909 229,901 167,011 47,398
Philadelphia-Wilmington-Atlantic City, PA-NJ-DE-MD CMSA
 13 14 10 13 6,188,463 1,309,282 833,038 86,667 327,894 216,561 75,836
New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, CT-NJ-NY CMSA
 14 20 15 16 21,199,865 4,427,393 2,684,988 290,182 1,135,343 741,521 251,794
Phoenix-Mesa, AZ MSA
 15 12 17 19 3,251,876 739,916 388,150 48,282 198,810 109,068 35,970
Baton Rouge, LA MSA
 16 17 24 N/A 602,894 135,277 56,733 9,084 23,189 19,796 5,984
Greensboro--Winston-Salem--High Point, NC MSA
 17 21 25 N/A 1,251,509 254,023 156,294 16,629 61,045 44,180 14,898
Memphis, TN-AR-MS MSA
 18 19 22 23 1,135,614 270,054 112,994 17,792 53,690 37,117 11,628
Birmingham, AL MSA
 18 21 33 24 921,106 192,376 116,600 12,787 43,852 32,162 10,980
San Diego, CA MSA
 20 15 17 6 2,813,833 611,119 313,750 40,018 148,788 94,794 30,028
Nashville, TN MSA
 21 18 16 18 1,231,311 255,887

123,414

 16,897 61,695 42,005 12,913
Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill, NC MSA
 22 13 10 17 1,187,941 245,007 102,574 15,907 57,965 39,983 11,384
Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA MSA
 23 35 28 N/A 637,958 124,212 102,330 8,294 35,728 23,342 8,776
Macon, GA MSA
 24 24 26 N/A 322,549 73,081 35,883 4,840 16,920 10,825 3,531
Louisville, KY-IN MSA
 25 29 25 N/A 1,025,598 212,220 129,105 14,055 62,944 36,009 12,283

Notes:

(1) Sensitive populations for all counties within their respective MSAs were included in total estimates.

(2) Those 14 & under and 65 & over are extra sensitive to ozone and are therefore included. They should not be used as population denominators for disease estimates.

(3) Pediatric asthma estimates are for those under 18 years of age and represent the estimated number of people who had an asthma attack during 2000 based on national rates (NHIS) applied to county population estimates (US Census).

(4) Adult asthma estimates are for those 18 years and older and represents the estimated number of people who had asthma during 2001 based on state rates (BRFSS) applied to county population estimates (US Census).

(5) Chronic bronchitis estimates are for adults 18 and over who had been diagnosed with this disease within 2000 based on national rates (NHIS) applied to county population estimates (US Census).

(6) Emphysema estimates are for adults 18 and over who have been diagnosed with this disease within their lifetime based on national rates (NHIS) applied to county population estimates (US Census).

(7) Adding across rows does not produce valid estimates, i.e. summing pediatric and adult asthma and/or emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
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