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Carsonia Avenue nb past Park Avenue, Lower Alsace Township, PA, Sept. 2025Photo: Mr. Matté (if there is an issue with this image, contact me using this image's Commons talk page, my Commons user talk page, or my English Wikipedia user talk page; I'll know about it a lot faster) · CC BY-SA 4.0
–Not graded
Health in Pennside · CDC PLACES 2025

Where Pennside residents get care

CDC publishes only some of its health estimates for Pennside, not the seven a Health Grade needs; here is what we do have.

Modeled estimates for adults 18+, CDC’s own estimate for Pennside. How CDC estimates town health

What stands out

What stands out about health in Pennside

★ What stands out · Checkups & screenings

Keeping up with care

Share of Pennside adults getting routine care. The full ring is 100%; the dark tick marks Pennsylvania.

78%Yearly checkupPA 79%
64%Dentist visitPA 64%
85%Cholesterol checkPA 85%
66%Colon screeningPA 68%
76%MammogramPA 78%
78%Taking BP medsPA 79%
1 in 11
working-age adults has no health insurance
Pennside 9.1% · Pennsylvania 1 in 17 (5.8%)
Chronic conditions

Out of every 100 Pennside adults…

On every condition, Pennside is about the same as Pennsylvania. Tap one to see it as people.

32 of every 100 Pennside adults have high blood pressure
Pennsylvania: 33 in 100 · about the same · likely 28.4–36.6%
Better than PAWorseAbout the samePennsylvania
Getting care

Care in and near Pennside

No hospital or community health center in Pennside itself. These are the nearest.

HNearest ERReading HospitalWest Reading · 3.8 miDirections →
★Best rated nearbyWellspan Ephrata Community Hospital★★★★★ · 19.3 miDirections →
+Low-cost careBerks Community Health CenterReading · 2.3 mi · sliding-scale feesDirections →
2.3 mi
Berks Community Health Center
3 sites · nearest in Reading
Sliding-scale fees
Directions to nearest
3.8 mi
Reading Hospital
West Reading · ★★★★★
ER
5.2 mi
Keystone Agricultural Worker Program - Berks
Reading · community health center
Sliding-scale fees
6 mi
Surgical Institute of Reading
Wyomissing · not rated
6.1 mi
Penn State Health St. Joseph
Reading · ★★★★★
ER
15.5 mi
Pottstown Hospital
Pottstown · ★★★★★
ER
✓ Primary carePennside is not a shortage area
✓ Dental carePennside is not a shortage area
✓ Mental healthPennside is not a shortage area

Hospitals: Medicare overall star ratings, 1–5. Community health centers charge on a sliding scale by income. Distances are straight-line from the center of Pennside; ≈ marks a hospital located by its town, not its street. Shortage areas: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas.

Habits

Everyday habits, side by side with Pennsylvania

Share of adults, with the Pennsylvania figure marked.

Get no exercise 24.2%PA 23.8%
Sleep under 7 hours 40.8%PA 37.9%
Binge drink 19.2%PA 18.3%
Smoke cigarettes 16.7%PA 15.8%
0%10%20%30%40%50%
Pennside, betterPennside, worseAbout the samePennsylvania
Where Pennside gets moving

5 miles of trails across 3 parks and preserves

Parks & trails →
Mind & connection

How Pennside adults are doing

About the same as Pennsylvania on each measure.

1 in 4Pennside adults have been diagnosed with depression
23.4% · PA 23% · About the same as PA
1 in 6Pennside adults are in frequent mental distress
16.6% · PA 16.4% · About the same as PA
The one neighbors can help with

A hello is a start.

Groups are the easiest way in: a walking group, a book club, your street.

Find a group →

If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. It’s free, confidential and open 24/7.

Around town

Pennside and the towns around it

How health changes across the town line.

Mount Penn: 35.7%Lower Alsace Township: 34.2%Stony Creek Mills: 35.5%Exeter Township: 34.2%St. Lawrence: 33.6%Reading: 42.6%Cumru Township: 33.5%Alsace Township: 34.3%Robeson Township: 33.9%Oley Township: 31.6%Birdsboro: 35.6%Amity Township: 33.2%Gibraltar: 34%Reiffton: 31.7%Jacksonwald: 32%Pennside: 34.9%PennsideMount PennLower Alsace TownshipStony Creek MillsExeter TownshipSt. LawrenceReading Hospital · West Reading · 3.8 mi · 4★ MedicareHSurgical Institute of Reading · Wyomissing · 6 miHPenn State Health St. Joseph · Reading · 6.1 mi · 3★ MedicareHBerks Community Health Center · Reading · 2.3 mi+Keystone Agricultural Worker Program - Berks · Reading · 5.2 mi+
Healthier than PANear PALess healthyHHospital+Health center
Obesity
#12 of 16 towns on this map, healthiest first
St. Lawrence33.6%
Lower Alsace Township34.2%
Exeter Township34.2%
Pennside34.9%
Stony Creek Mills35.5%
Mount Penn35.7%
PA33.8%

Nearby towns are shaded from CDC’s estimates for their ZIP codes, or CDC’s own figure for cities and villages.

Health next door

TownHealthObesityDiabetesSmokingFigures from
Lower Alsace TownshipB+34.2%10.9%15.3%ZIP 19606
Mount PennB+35.7%10.4%15.3%CDC place
Stony Creek Mills————
Exeter TownshipB+34.2%10.8%15.8%ZIP codes
St. LawrenceA−33.6%10.8%13.9%CDC place

Stony Creek Mills: a Census-designated place inside a larger town, graded as part of it. Same-state neighbors only, ordered by length of shared border.

Disability

Living with a disability

Shown without a better/worse judgment.

30.9%

of Pennside adults live with a disability (Pennsylvania 31.3%). Thinking or memory is the most common.

Walking or climbing stairs13.8%
Thinking or memory14.6%
Hearing7.5%
Errands alone8.1%
Vision5.2%
Dressing or bathing3.7%
Pennsylvania

Questions about health in Pennside

Why doesn’t Pennside have a Health Grade?

Every Health Grade is built from seven of CDC’s PLACES estimates, and CDC doesn’t publish all seven for Pennside.

What hospital is closest to Pennside?

Reading Hospital in West Reading, 3.8 miles in a straight line from Pennside’s center point, is the nearest general hospital with an emergency room. Medicare rates it 4 of 5 stars.

Where can I get low-cost care near Pennside?

4 community health center sites are within 10 miles; the nearest is Berks Community Health Center in Reading, 2.3 miles away. They charge on a sliding scale by income.

Neighbors talk health

Doctors taking patients, urgent care, staying active in Pennside.

Town Square →
Ask your neighbors

Health estimates: CDC PLACES: Local Data for Better Health, 2025 release. The Pennsylvania figure combines its counties, weighted by adult population. Hospitals and star ratings: Medicare Care Compare (CMS). Health centers and shortage areas: HRSA. Ages: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. Town boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau. This page isn’t medical advice. In an emergency, call 911.