pokane County’s rate of deaths from falls is more than double of that of the rest of the U.S. and Washington state as a whole, according to Spokane Regional Health District.
In 2017, the most recent year for which data are available, 178 people in Spokane County died from an accidental fall; that’s 29 deaths from falls per 100,000 people. The vast majority — 95% — of falls occur among people over age 65.
Nationwide, about 36,300 people, or 11 people per 100,000, died of an unintentional fall in 2017, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In Washington state that year, 943 people — 12 per 100,000 — died of an unintentional fall, according to the state Department of Health.
Joel Reeves, senior falls prevention coordinator with SRHD, says there are a few reasons why Spokane County’s fatal fall rate is so much higher, but it all comes down to overall health.