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North Calais Village Historic DistrictNorth Calais Village Historic District · Photo: Magicpiano · CC BY-SA 4.0
AHealth Grade
Health in Calais · CDC PLACES 2025

On CDC estimates, Calais is healthier than 90% of U.S. towns

Calais differs from Vermont on 3 of 31 measures CDC estimates: 2 better, 1 worse.

Modeled estimates for adults 18+, from ZIP codes 05650, 05648, 05667, 05682. How CDC estimates town health

Health Grade

What’s behind Calais’ grade

On seven CDC estimates for adults, Calais is healthier than 90% of U.S. towns. All seven estimates beat the typical U.S. town. The strongest is obesity (fewer adults with obesity than 91% of towns); the weakest is smoking, still better than 78%.

ASelf-rated health13.9% · VT 14.5% · U.S. 19.4%
A−Physical distress12.1% · VT 12.5% · U.S. 13%
A−Mental distress14.8% · VT 15.9% · U.S. 15.9%
AObesity27.3% · VT 28.6% · U.S. 32.9%
ADiabetes9.5% · VT 8.8% · U.S. 12%
A−Smoking11.6% smoke · VT 11.2% · U.S. 11.8%
AExercise18.1% · VT 18.9% · U.S. 24.7%
All U.S. towns we grade (21,250)Healthier than 90%
Less healthyHealthier
U.S. towns with similar incomes, $75K–$126K (8,503)Healthier than 91%

Health estimates follow income closely across the country: towns with higher household incomes usually score higher (a correlation of 0.77 across 21,157 graded towns). Calais’ median household income is $100,625; among the 8,503 U.S. towns within 25% of that ($75K–$126K), it’s healthier than 91%, about where its income would put it.

A fairly firm grade. With every estimate at the unfavorable or the favorable end of CDC’s likely range, Calais could be anywhere from B+ to A+. These are ZIP code figures (ZIP 05650,05648,05667,05682,05640,05658,05666), weighted by land area, which can reach past town lines.

How TownRatings grades health →

Chronic conditions

Out of every 100 Calais adults…

Calais runs above VT on 1 of 12 conditions. Tap one to see it as people.

35 of every 100 Calais adults have high cholesterol
Vermont: 32 in 100 · worse · likely 32.3–38.3%
Better than VTWorseAbout the sameVermont
Getting care

Care in and near Calais

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

HNearest ERCentral Vermont Medical CenterBarre · 11.9 miDirections →
★Best rated nearbyCentral Vermont Medical Center★★★★★ · 11.9 miDirections →
+Low-cost careNortheast Washington County Community HePlainfield · 6 mi · sliding-scale feesDirections →
6 mi
Northeast Washington County Community He
2 sites · nearest in Plainfield
Sliding-scale fees
Directions to nearest
11.2 mi
Northern Counties Health Care
2 sites · nearest in Hardwick
Sliding-scale fees
Directions to nearest
11.9 mi
Central Vermont Medical Center
Barre · ★★★★★
ER
14.7 mi
Copley Hospital
Morrisville · ★★★★★
ERRural critical access
23.3 mi
Northeastern Vermont Regional Hospital
Saint Johnsbury · ★★★★★
ERRural critical access
26.7 mi
Cottage Hospital
Woodsville · ★★★★★
ERRural critical access
✓ Primary careCalais is not a shortage area
✓ Dental careCalais is not a shortage area
✓ Mental healthCalais 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 Calais; ≈ marks a hospital located by its town, not its street. Shortage areas: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas.

Habits

Everyday habits, side by side with Vermont

Share of adults, with the Vermont figure marked.

Get no exercise 18.1%VT 18.9%
Sleep under 7 hours 24.7%VT 28.6%
Binge drink 15.3%VT 16.6%
Smoke cigarettes 11.6%VT 11.2%
0%10%20%30%40%
Calais, betterCalais, worseAbout the sameVermont
Where Calais gets moving

8 miles of trails across 3 parks and preserves

Parks & trails →
Checkups & screenings

Keeping up with care

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

76%Yearly checkupVT 76%
71%Dentist visitVT 69%
88%Cholesterol checkVT 86%
69%Colon screeningVT 69%
75%MammogramVT 76%
79%Taking BP medsVT 77%
1 in 19
working-age adults has no health insurance
Calais 5.3% · Vermont 1 in 17 (6%)
Mind & connection

How Calais adults are doing

About the same as Vermont on each measure.

1 in 5Calais adults lack social or emotional support
21.6% · VT 22% · About the same as VT
1 in 4Calais adults have been diagnosed with depression
27.2% · VT 26.5% · About the same as VT
1 in 7Calais adults are in frequent mental distress
14.8% · VT 15.9% · About the same as VT
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.

Everyday needs

Making ends meet

Needs that shape health as much as any doctor visit: food, housing, utilities and a way to get around.

1 in 12
Calais adults worry about having enough food
8.6% · VT 9.2%
About the same as VT
1 in 12
Calais adults worry about keeping their housing
8.3% · VT 8.6%
About the same as VT
1 in 18
Calais adults were threatened with a utility shut-off
5.6% · VT 5.7%
About the same as VT
1 in 16
Calais adults lack reliable transportation
6.1% · VT 6.4%
About the same as VT

10.5% of Calais adults receive SNAP (food stamps), compared with 11.3% across Vermont.

Around town

Calais and the towns around it

Calais’s Health Grade ranks 2nd of 3 graded towns around it.

East Montpelier: 25.9%Worcester: 26.5%Marshfield: 28.7%Woodbury: 28%Elmore: 30.4%Montpelier: 25.5%Berlin: 26.8%Middlesex: 26%Barre: 29.3%Plainfield: 28.5%Stowe: 28.1%Cabot: 29.3%Groton: 31.4%Peacham: 30.7%Hardwick: 31.2%Wolcott: 30.9%Morristown: 29.6%Calais: 27.3%CalaisEast MontpelierWorcesterMarshfieldWoodburyElmoreCentral Vermont Medical Center · Barre · 11.9 mi · 3★ MedicareHCopley Hospital · Morrisville · 14.7 mi · 2★ MedicareHThe Health Center · Plainfield · 6 mi+Hardwick Area Health Center · Hardwick · 11.2 mi+
Healthier than VTNear VTLess healthyHHospital+Health center
Obesity
#6 of 18 towns on this map, healthiest first
East Montpelier25.9%
Worcester26.5%
Calais27.3%
Woodbury28%
Marshfield28.7%
Elmore30.4%
VT28.6%

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
CalaisA27.3%9.5%11.6%ZIP codes
Worcester————
East MontpelierA+25.9%8.7%9.9%ZIP codes
Woodbury————
MarshfieldA−28.7%10%13.3%ZIP codes
Elmore————

Worcester, Woodbury and Elmore: fewer than 1,000 residents. Same-state neighbors only, ordered by length of shared border.

Disability

Living with a disability

Shown without a better/worse judgment.

25.8%

of Calais adults live with a disability (Vermont 26.4%). Thinking or memory is the most common.

Walking or climbing stairs10.7%
Thinking or memory11.3%
Hearing7.8%
Errands alone6.3%
Vision3.8%
Dressing or bathing3.1%
Vermont

Every CDC estimate for Calais

Share of adults, 39 measures, with CDC’s likely range.

On the 31 measures below that have a better and a worse direction, Calais is better than Vermont on 2 and worse on 1; on the rest, the Vermont figure falls inside Calais’ likely range, so we call them about the same. Disability and SNAP are described, not compared as better or worse.

Adults who…CalaisVTU.S.vs VT
Overall health
Fair or poor health13.9%11.3–16.814.5%19.4%About the same
Frequent physical distress (physical health not good 14+ days a month)12.1%10.3–14.112.5%13%About the same
Frequent mental distress (mental health not good 14+ days a month)14.8%12.8–16.815.9%15.9%About the same
Conditions
Obesity27.3%23.4–31.528.6%32.9%About the same
Diabetes9.5%8.1–118.8%12%About the same
High blood pressure32%28.9–3531.4%34.4%About the same
High cholesterol (adults screened in 5 years)35.3%32.3–38.332.1%37.1%Worse
Arthritis30.4%27.5–33.227.8%25.3%About the same
Asthma10.9%9.8–12.111.1%9.9%About the same
Cancer, other than skin cancer10.9%9.9–129.9%7.9%About the same
Coronary heart disease6.4%5.5–7.46.3%6.4%About the same
COPD6.6%5.2–8.16.5%6.3%About the same
Stroke3.4%2.9–3.93.3%3.4%About the same
Lost all teeth (ages 65+)11.6%9.5–1410.1%12.3%About the same
Habits
Smoke cigarettes11.6%8.8–14.611.2%11.8%About the same
No exercise outside work18.1%14.6–2218.9%24.7%About the same
Binge drinking15.3%13.2–17.516.6%15.4%About the same
Sleep under 7 hours24.7%21.2–28.428.6%36%Better
Checkups and coverage
No health insurance (ages 18–64)5.3%3.9–7.16%11%About the same
Checkup in the past year76.4%73.5–79.176.1%77.4%About the same
Dentist visit in the past year71%68.1–73.869.2%63.2%About the same
Cholesterol check in 5 years88.4%86.4–90.185.9%87.1%Better
Taking blood pressure medicine (adults with high blood pressure)78.7%75.8–81.276.7%76.5%About the same
Colorectal cancer screening (ages 45–75)69.2%65.3–72.969.2%65.5%About the same
Mammogram in 2 years (women 50–74)75.1%68.9–80.776.1%76.4%About the same
Mind and connection
Ever told they have depression27.2%24.3–30.226.5%20.6%About the same
Lack social and emotional support21.6%18.9–24.422%23.6%About the same
Everyday needs
Worried about having enough food8.6%7.6–9.79.2%15%About the same
Worried about keeping housing8.3%7.2–9.38.6%12%About the same
Threatened with a utility shut-off5.6%4.9–6.45.7%7.6%About the same
Lack reliable transportation6.1%5.5–6.76.4%7.9%About the same
Received SNAP (food stamps)10.5%9.2–11.911.3%11.6%About the same
Disability
Any disability25.8%22–29.926.4%30.1%About the same
Difficulty walking or climbing stairs10.7%8.7–1311%13.6%About the same
Difficulty concentrating or remembering11.3%9.4–13.412.5%13.9%About the same
Hearing difficulty7.8%6.8–8.97.7%6.7%About the same
Vision difficulty3.8%3.1–4.54%5.4%About the same
Difficulty doing errands alone6.3%5.2–7.66.8%7.9%About the same
Difficulty dressing or bathing3.1%2.6–3.83.1%3.8%About the same

Each figure is the share of adults 18+ unless the label says otherwise; small numbers after it are CDC’s likely range (95% interval). “About the same” means the Vermont figure falls inside that range.

Questions about health in Calais

Is Calais a healthy place to live?

On seven CDC estimates for adults, Calais is healthier than 90% of U.S. towns: A for health. Among U.S. towns with similar household incomes it’s healthier than 91%. These are modeled estimates of who lives there, not a measure of local care or habits alone.

What is the obesity rate in Calais?

CDC estimates 27.3% of adults have obesity, likely between 23.4% and 31.5%, against 28.6% across Vermont and 32.9% nationally.

What hospital is closest to Calais?

Central Vermont Medical Center in Barre, 11.9 miles in a straight line from Calais’ center point, is the nearest general hospital with an emergency room; Medicare rates it 3 of 5 stars.

How many people in Calais have no health insurance?

CDC estimates 5.3% of adults ages 18–64 have no health insurance (likely 3.9–7.1%), against 6% across Vermont.

How accurate are these numbers?

They’re modeled estimates: CDC applies national survey answers to each area’s age, sex, race and education mix, so they describe who lives in Calais more than anything measured there. At the ends of CDC’s ranges the grade could be anywhere from B+ to A+.

Neighbors talk health

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

Town Square →
Ask your neighbors

Health estimates: CDC PLACES: Local Data for Better Health, 2025 release. The Vermont figure combines its counties, weighted by adult population. Hospitals and star ratings: Medicare Care Compare (CMS). Health centers and shortage areas: HRSA. The Health Grade is our own summary of CDC’s estimates, not an official rating. 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.