Life expectancy tends to be longest in Montana's rural counties

The Billings Gazette reports.  Three exceptions to this rule of rural longevity are some barely metro counties with populations not much over the 100K threshold:  Flathead County (Kalispell), Gallatin County (Bozeman) and Missoula County (Missoula) are also in the top 25 in terms of life expectancy.  Though metropolitan now, Gallatin (population 118K), home of Montana State University, was nonmetro not that long ago, and Flathead County's population is just over the 100K threshold.  Missoula County, home to the University of Montana, has a population of 117K.  

Other counties hitting the top of the charts for life expectancy are Lincoln, Dawson, Ravalli, Mineral, Chouteau, Daniels, Stillwater, Broadwater, and Sweet Grass.  Love that this little story features photos of each of these county courthouses.  

These data are surprising if for no other reason than that rural health care is getting harder to get and rural hospital closures continue across the nation.  Here's a report suggesting that 12 of Montana's rural hospitals are at risk of closure--nearly a quarter of the state's rural hospitals.