Every community must prepare for and respond to hazardous events, whether a natural disaster like a tornado or disease outbreak, or a human-made event such as a harmful chemical spill. A number of factors, including poverty, lack of access to transportation, and crowded housing may weaken a community’s ability to prevent human suffering and financial loss in a disaster. These factors are known as social vulnerability.Link to this page: https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/placeandhealth/svi/interactive_map.html

From the CDC/ATSDR: "Social vulnerability refers to the potential negative effects on communities caused by external stresses on human health. Such stresses include natural or human-caused disasters, or disease outbreaks. Reducing social vulnerability can decrease both human suffering and economic loss. The CDC/ATSDR SVI uses 16 U.S. census variables to help local officials identify communities that may need support before, during or after disasters."For more information, visit the ATSDR website on social vulnerability.

This feature layer visualizes the 2018 overall SVI for U.S. counties and tractsSocial Vulnerability Index (SVI) indicates the relative vulnerability of every U.S. county and tract15 social factors grouped into four major themesIndex value calculated for each county for the 15 social factors, four major themes, and the overall rankWhat is CDC Social Vulnerability Index?ATSDR’s Geospatial Research, Analysis & Services Program (GRASP) has created a tool to help emergency response planners and public health officials identify and map the communities that will most likely need support before, during, and after a hazardous event.The Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) uses U.S. Census data to determine the social vulnerability of every county and tract. CDC SVI ranks each county and tract on 15 social factors, including poverty, lack of vehicle access, and crowded housing, and groups them into four related themes:SocioeconomicHousing Composition and DisabilityMinority Status and LanguageHousing and Transportation VariablesFor a detailed description of variable uses, please refer to the full SVI 2018 documentation.RankingsWe ranked counties and tracts for the entire United States against one another. This feature layer can be used for mapping and analysis of relative vulnerability of counties in multiple states, or across the U.S. as a whole. Rankings are based on percentiles. Percentile ranking values range from 0 to 1, with higher values indicating greater vulnerability. For each county and tract, we generated its percentile rank among all counties and tracts for 1) the fifteen individual variables, 2) the four themes, and 3) its overall position. Overall Rankings:We totaled the sums for each theme, ordered the counties, and then calculated overall percentile rankings. Please note: taking the sum of the sums for each theme is the same as summing individual variable rankings.The overall tract summary ranking variable is RPL_THEMES. Theme rankings:For each of the four themes, we summed the percentiles for the variables comprising each theme. We ordered the summed percentiles for each theme to determine theme-specific percentile rankings. The four summary theme ranking variables are: Socioeconomic theme - RPL_THEME1Housing Composition and Disability - RPL_THEME2Minority Status & Language - RPL_THEME3Housing & Transportation - RPL_THEME4FlagsCounties in the top 10%, i.e., at the 90th percentile of values, are given a value of 1 to indicate high vulnerability. Counties below the 90th percentile are given a value of 0. For a theme, the flag value is the number of flags for variables comprising the theme. We calculated the overall flag value for each county as the total number of all variable flags. SVI Informational VideosIntroduction to CDC Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)Methods for CDC Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)More Questions?CDC SVI 2018 Full DocumentationSVI Home PageContact the SVI Coordinator

What is Social Vulnerability?Every community must prepare for and respond to hazardous events, whether a natural disaster like a tornado or a disease outbreak, or an anthropogenic event such as a harmful chemical spill. The degree to which a community exhibits certain social conditions, including high poverty, low percentage of vehicle access, or crowded households, among others, may affect that community’s ability to prevent human suffering and financial loss in the event of a disaster. These factors describe a community’s social vulnerability.What is the CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index?ATSDR’s Geospatial Research, Analysis, & Services Program (GRASP) created the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry Social Vulnerability Index (hereafter, CDC/ATSDR SVI or SVI) to help public health officials and emergency response planners identify and map the communities that will most likely need support before, during, and after a hazardous event.SVI indicates the relative vulnerability of every U.S. census tract. Census tracts are subdivisions of counties for which the Census collects statistical data. SVI ranks the tracts on 16 social factors, such as unemployment, racial and ethnic minority status, and disability status. Then, SVI further groups the factors into four related themes. Thus, each tract receives a ranking for each Census variable and for each of the four themes as well as an overall ranking.Below, text that describes “tract” methods also refers to county methods.How can the SVI help communities be better prepared for hazardous events?SVI provides specific socially and spatially relevant information to help public health officials and local planners better prepare communities to respond to emergency events such as severe weather, floods, disease outbreaks, or chemical exposure.SVI can be used to:Assess community need during emergency preparedness planning.Estimate the type and quantity of needed supplies such as food, water, medicine, and bedding.Decide the number of emergency personnel required to assist people.Identify areas in need of emergency shelters.Create a plan to evacuate people, accounting for those who have special needs, such as those without vehicles, the elderly, or people who do not speak English well.Identify communities that will need continued support to recover following an emergency or natural disaster.For more detailed methodology and attribute details, please review this document.

Wisconsin DNR Web map displaying the CDC Social Vulnerability Index 2018 at the census tract Level, centered on Wisconsin. The 2018 Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) layer was created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) / Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) / Geospatial Research, Analysis, and Services Program (GRASP). Visit https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/placeandhealth/svi/index.html for more information.

The interactive maps are visual representations of the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI). Data were extracted from the US Census and the American Community Survey.

Webmap showing the CDC Socio-Economic Vulnerability population Index to natural disasters. More information can be found here: https://svi.cdc.gov/

This map ranks every county and tract in the U.S. by its social vulnerability -- the resilience of communities when confronted by external stresses on human health, stresses such as natural or human-caused disasters, or disease outbreaks. This web map was updated March 17, 2020 to use the latest 2018 social vulnerability layers from CDC, and now includes several alternative layers to visualize different themes described below.This map visualizes the 2018 overall SVI for U.S. counties and tractsSocial Vulnerability Index (SVI) indicates the relative vulnerability of every U.S. county and tract15 social factors grouped into four major themesIndex value calculated for each county for the 15 social factors, four major themes, and the overall rankWhat is CDC Social Vulnerability Index?ATSDR’s Geospatial Research, Analysis & Services Program (GRASP) has created a tool to help emergency response planners and public health officials identify and map the communities that will most likely need support before, during, and after a hazardous event.The Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) uses U.S. Census data to determine the social vulnerability of every county and tract. CDC SVI ranks each county and tract on 15 social factors, including poverty, lack of vehicle access, and crowded housing, and groups them into four related themes:SocioeconomicHousing Composition and DisabilityMinority Status and LanguageHousing and Transportation VariablesFor a detailed description of variable uses, please refer to the full SVI 2018 documentation.RankingsWe ranked counties and tracts for the entire United States against one another. This web map can be used for mapping and analysis of relative vulnerability of counties in multiple states, or across the U.S. as a whole. Rankings are based on percentiles. Percentile ranking values range from 0 to 1, with higher values indicating greater vulnerability. For each county and tract, we generated its percentile rank among all counties and tracts for 1) the fifteen individual variables, 2) the four themes, and 3) its overall position. Overall Rankings:We totaled the sums for each theme, ordered the counties, and then calculated overall percentile rankings. Please note: taking the sum of the sums for each theme is the same as summing individual variable rankings.The overall tract summary ranking variable is RPL_THEMES. Theme rankings:For each of the four themes, we summed the percentiles for the variables comprising each theme. We ordered the summed percentiles for each theme to determine theme-specific percentile rankings. The four summary theme ranking variables are: Socioeconomic theme - RPL_THEME1Housing Composition and Disability - RPL_THEME2Minority Status & Language - RPL_THEME3Housing & Transportation - RPL_THEME4FlagsCounties in the top 10%, i.e., at the 90th percentile of values, are given a value of 1 to indicate high vulnerability. Counties below the 90th percentile are given a value of 0. For a theme, the flag value is the number of flags for variables comprising the theme. We calculated the overall flag value for each county as the total number of all variable flags. SVI Informational VideosIntroduction to CDC Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)Methods for CDC Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)More Questions?CDC SVI 2018 Full DocumentationSVI Home PageContact the SVI Coordinator

OverviewThis feature layer visualizes the 2022 overall SVI for U.S. counties and tractsSocial Vulnerability Index (SVI) indicates the relative vulnerability of every U.S. county and tract16 social factors grouped into four major themesIndex value calculated for each county for the 16 social factors, four major themes, and the overall rankWhat is CDC/ATSDR Social Vulnerability Index?ATSDR’s Geospatial Research, Analysis & Services Program (GRASP) has created the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) to help emergency response planners and public health officials identify and map the communities that will most likely need support before, during, and after a hazardous event.SVI uses U.S. Census data to determine the social vulnerability of every county and tract. CDC SVI ranks each county and tract on 16 social factors, including poverty, lack of vehicle access, and crowded housing, and groups them into four related themes:Socioeconomic StatusHousehold CharacteristicsRacial & Ethnic Minority StatusHousing Type & TransportationVariablesFor a detailed description of variable uses, please refer to the full SVI 2022 documentation.RankingsWe ranked counties and tracts for the entire United States against one another. This feature layer can be used for mapping and analysis of relative vulnerability of counties in multiple states, or across the U.S. as a whole. Rankings are based on percentiles. Percentile ranking values range from 0 to 1, with higher values indicating greater vulnerability. For each county and tract, we generated its percentile rank among all counties and tracts for 1) the sixteen individual variables, 2) the four themes, and 3) its overall position.Overall Rankings:We totaled the sums for each theme, ordered the counties, and then calculated overall percentile rankings. Please note: taking the sum of the sums for each theme is the same as summing individual variable rankings.The overall tract summary ranking variable is RPL_THEMES.Theme rankings:For each of the four themes, we summed the percentiles for the variables comprising each theme. We ordered the summed percentiles for each theme to determine theme-specific percentile rankings. The four summary theme ranking variables are:Socioeconomic Status - RPL_THEME1Household Characteristics - RPL_THEME2Racial & Ethnic Minority Status - RPL_THEME3Housing Type & Transportation - RPL_THEME4FlagsCounties and tracts in the top 10%, i.e., at the 90th percentile of values, are given a value of 1 to indicate high vulnerability. Counties and tracts below the 90th percentile are given a value of 0. For a theme, the flag value is the number of flags for variables comprising the theme. We calculated the overall flag value for each county as the total number of all variable flags.SVI Informational VideosIntroduction to CDC Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)More Questions?CDC SVI 2022 Full DocumentationSVI Home PageContact the SVI Coordinator

The Vermont Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) is produced by the Vermont Department of Health and draws together 16 measures of vulnerability into a single index. For each measure, census tracts above the 90th percentile, or the 10% most vulnerable tracts, are assigned a vulnerability flag. The overall index is measured as the count of vulnerability flags in each census tract.All data is acquired from American Community Survey 5-year estimate data, 2016-2020. A downloadable files include measured percentage, percentile rank, margin of error, and relative standard error for each indicator per census tract.The 16 vulnerability measures: population below federal poverty level; population unemployed; income per capita; population without a high school degree; population without health insurance; population age 0-17; population age 65+; population with disability; households with children headed by single parent; population persons of color; population with limited English; housing units in large apartment buildings of 10+ units; housing units mobile homes; housing units with crowding ( >1 person/ bedroom); population without vehicle access; population living in group quarters.It is important to remember that the SVI is just the first step in screening populations that may be more or less vulnerable. Depending on the situation, different measures could be of more or less importance and should be viewed more closely. If available, local information should always be considered in conjunction with these population estimates.

This is the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) developed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) [1]. This is often used by the emergency response community to anticipate areas where social support systems are weaker, and residents may be more likely to need help. A map viewer for the national database can be found here [2].

November 2023 updates: at the time of Hurricane Harvey, the latest SVI was based on 2014 census data. The CDC SVI website and feature services have since changed. See the current (updated) links for more details.

Subsets of CDC's 2014 SVI for the Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma hydrologic study areas can be downloaded from the contents list below.

[1] SVI web site [https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/placeandhealth/svi/index.html [2] SVI interactive map [https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/placeandhealth/svi/interactive_map.html]

This data set contains the relative social vulnerability of Census tracts areas in Utah. Data is from the ATSDR's Geospatial Research, Analysis & Services Program. Data set contains 15 social factors, including employment, transportation, minority status, health, education, age & disability.

"ATSDR’s Geospatial Research, Analysis & Services Program (GRASP) created Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Social Vulnerability Index (CDC SVI or simply SVI, hereafter) to help public health officials and emergency response planners identify and map the communities that will most likely need support before, during, and after a hazardous event.

SVI indicates the relative vulnerability of every U.S. Census tract. Census tracts are subdivisions of counties for which the Census collects statistical data. SVI ranks the tracts on 15 social factors, including unemployment, minority status, and disability, and further groups them into four related themes. Thus, each tract receives a ranking for each Census variable and for each of the four themes, as well as an overall ranking."

For more see https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/place-health/php/svi/svi-data-documentation-download.html

This feature layer visualizes the 2018 overall SVI for U.S. counties and tractsSocial Vulnerability Index (SVI) indicates the relative vulnerability of every U.S. county and tract15 social factors grouped into four major themesIndex value calculated for each county for the 15 social factors, four major themes, and the overall rankWhat is CDC Social Vulnerability Index?ATSDR’s Geospatial Research, Analysis & Services Program (GRASP) has created a tool to help emergency response planners and public health officials identify and map the communities that will most likely need support before, during, and after a hazardous event.The Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) uses U.S. Census data to determine the social vulnerability of every county and tract. CDC SVI ranks each county and tract on 15 social factors, including poverty, lack of vehicle access, and crowded housing, and groups them into four related themes:SocioeconomicHousing Composition and DisabilityMinority Status and LanguageHousing and Transportation VariablesFor a detailed description of variable uses, please refer to the full SVI 2018 documentation.RankingsWe ranked counties and tracts for the entire United States against one another. This feature layer can be used for mapping and analysis of relative vulnerability of counties in multiple states, or across the U.S. as a whole. Rankings are based on percentiles. Percentile ranking values range from 0 to 1, with higher values indicating greater vulnerability. For each county and tract, we generated its percentile rank among all counties and tracts for 1) the fifteen individual variables, 2) the four themes, and 3) its overall position. Overall Rankings:We totaled the sums for each theme, ordered the counties, and then calculated overall percentile rankings. Please note: taking the sum of the sums for each theme is the same as summing individual variable rankings.The overall tract summary ranking variable is RPL_THEMES. Theme rankings:For each of the four themes, we summed the percentiles for the variables comprising each theme. We ordered the summed percentiles for each theme to determine theme-specific percentile rankings. The four summary theme ranking variables are: Socioeconomic theme - RPL_THEME1Housing Composition and Disability - RPL_THEME2Minority Status & Language - RPL_THEME3Housing & Transportation - RPL_THEME4FlagsCounties in the top 10%, i.e., at the 90th percentile of values, are given a value of 1 to indicate high vulnerability. Counties below the 90th percentile are given a value of 0. For a theme, the flag value is the number of flags for variables comprising the theme. We calculated the overall flag value for each county as the total number of all variable flags. SVI Informational VideosIntroduction to CDC Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)Methods for CDC Social Vulnerability Index (SVI)More Questions?CDC SVI 2018 Full DocumentationSVI Home PageContact the SVI Coordinator

These data were produced as part of the study "An empirical social vulnerability map (‘GlobE-SoVI’) for flood risk assessment at global scale" (currently in peer review). We provide raster data at 30 arc seconds spatial resolution (folder 'tif') and vector data per administrative unit (folder 'shp') of five social vulnerability variables and the final Global Empirical Social Vulnerability Index (GlobE-SoVI) calculated from the five variables. The code for data processing and analysis is available at https://github.com/lena-reimann/GlobE-SoVI [DOI]. File names and units are as follows: tif shp Variable file name unit column name unit Share of elderly percent_elderly percent eld_per percent Mean years of schooling (at age 25+) by gender MYS_gender years MYS_gen years Gender income gap income_gender percent inc_gap percent Share of villages villages Boolean village percent Maximum walking time to healthcare facility walk_healthcare_hours hours wlk_hrs hours GlobE-SoVI GlobE-SoVI index GlobE-SoVI index

ATSDR’s Geospatial Research, Analysis & Services Program (GRASP) has created a tool to help emergency response planners and public health officials identify and map the communities that will most likely need support before, during, and after a hazardous event. The Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) uses U.S. Census data to determine the social vulnerability of every Census tract. Census tracts are subdivisions of counties for which the Census collects statistical data.The SVI ranks each tract on 14 social factors, including poverty, lack of vehicle access, and crowded housing, and groups them into four related themes. Maps of the four themes are shown in the figure below. Each tract receives a separate ranking for each of the four themes, as well as an overall ranking.

Social vulnerability refers to the social, economic, and cultural factors that influence access to resources and influence the ability of individuals, households, or communities to prevent, respond to, and recover from events such as wildfire (Coughlan et al., 2019; Cutter et al., 2003). Some examples of social, economic, or cultural factors that may influence social vulnerability to wildfire include income, language proficiency, cultural and psychological relationships to fire and land management, and level of trust in government (Coughlan et al., 2019). The SVI map layer developed for SB 762 identifies areas in the state that may be more vulnerable to the impacts of wildfire following the methodologies of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) (Centers for Disease Control Social Vulnerability Index 2018 Documentation, 2022) which was initially developed by Flanagan et al. (2011) for disaster risk management. NOTE: The SVI dataset within the Oregon Explorer tool underwent an update on February 5, 2024 to rectify inaccuracies in the original data. The initial SVI layer computations omitted data pertaining to the indicator "adults over age 65." We strongly recommend individuals who downloaded SVI data prior to this update revise their records accordingly.