The 2025 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) process is complete, and Healthy Cabarrus—a collaborative program of Cabarrus Health Alliance—proudly announces four community-identified priority areas: Behavioral Health, Housing, Transportation and Early Childhood Education.
This announcement follows an extensive, months-long assessment process involving more than 1,200 survey participants, community focus groups, and collaborative input from dozens of local organizations, community leaders and individuals who care about the future of Cabarrus County.
Every three to four years, Healthy Cabarrus leads the assessment process to better understand the strengths and challenges across the county that impact health. The 2025 process prioritized meaningful community engagement. From surveys to focus groups, the goal was to gather insight directly from the people who live, work, play and engage in Cabarrus County. This input shaped both the data analysis and decision-making that followed. The feedback collected provided a critical foundation for data analysis and prioritization.
Each of the following priorities was identified through a two-phase voting process conducted by the Community Planning Council, a diverse group of community stakeholders, including healthcare providers, educators, nonprofit leaders, business owners, and residents:
- Behavioral Health: This continues to be a top concern for Cabarrus residents. Survey responses and community data revealed growing demand for access to affordable care, crisis intervention, bilingual providers, and youth-focused mental health support.
- Transportation: Lack of reliable and affordable transportation was identified as a major barrier to healthcare, employment, education, and social services. Survey respondents cited transportation hardships as a root cause of challenges across the county.
- Early Childhood Education: Residents voiced concerns about early learning opportunities and access to affordable childcare. The community sees high-quality early education as foundational to long-term academic and health outcomes.
- Housing: Safe, affordable housing was cited as essential to personal and community well-being. Data from the CHNA and resident feedback highlighted rising housing costs and limited availability as growing concerns.
The Community Planning Council extensively reviewed both quantitative primary data as well as qualitative secondary input (from surveys and focus groups). The initial list of over a dozen community topics was narrowed down through two rounds of in-person voting by the Community Planning Council.
“We set out to understand not just what the data tells us, but what our residents are experiencing every day,” said Dr. Jessica Grant, Executive Director of Healthy Cabarrus. “By pairing community input with local and national data trends, we were able to identify priorities that are grounded in both evidence and real-life experience. That combination gives us a stronger foundation for the work ahead.”
The final Community Health Needs Assessment report will be published later this summer and widely shared through community partners, local leaders, digital platforms and outreach efforts to ensure residents across Cabarrus County are informed and engaged. These four priorities will guide planning, funding, and collaborative action over the next three years.
Cabarrus Health Alliance would like to thank the members of the Community Planning Council for their commitment to this half-year process. Members include:
- Casey Aldridge, First Presbyterian Church
- Tammy Alexander, Cabarrus Health Alliance
- Mia Alvarez, City of Kannapolis
- Robert Anderson, Cabarrus County Community Development
- Gwen Bartley, Amazing Grace Advocacy
- John Basilice, Kannapolis City Schools
- Ann Benfield, Cabarrus Partnership for Children
- LaRhonda Bryson, Rowan Cabarrus Community College
- Stephanie Burleson, Cabarrus EDC
- Mary Carr, City of Concord
- Kara Clarke, Cabarrus County EMS
- Cam Cruickshank, Greater Cabarrus Foundation
- Lopa Das Roy, Community Member
- Timbs Fulghum, Atrium Health
- Dr. Patrick Graham, WeBuild Concord
- Angela Graham, Community Member
- Merl Hamilton, Community Member
- Emma Hand, Atrium Health
- Diane Honeycutt, Allen Tate Realty
- Ed Hosack, Cooperative Christian Ministry
- Jimmy Hughes, City of Concord Police Department
- Amy Jewell, Cabarrus County Schools
- Elaine Johnson, Community Member
- Elie Landrum, Town of Harrisburg
- La'Donte Lee, Mental Health America
- Laura Lyerly Milliken, Community Free Clinic
- Hollye McCallum, Cabarrus County Department of Human Services
- Dr. Kamilah McKissick, Cabarrus County Department of Human Services
- Valerie Melton, Boys and Girls Club
- Rebecca Moffett, CVAN
- Lidiz Mora, Camino
- Steve Morris, Community Member
- Suzanne Philemon, Cannon Foundation
- Mark Plemmons, Independent Tribune
- Cecilla Plez, Duke Clinical &Translational Science Institute and El Puente Hispano
- Della Robinson, City of Concord
- Brent Rockett, Rowan Cabarrus YMCA
- Malisha Ross, Partners
- Ashlie Shanley, Cabarrus County District Attorney
- Van Shaw, Cabarrus County Sheriff
- Amaha Sherferaw, Cooperative Christian Ministry
- Dustin Shoe, Cabarrus County Schools
- Erin Shoe, Cabarrus Health Alliance
- Crystal Smith, Town of Mount Pleasant
- Theron Smoutherson, Cabarrus County NAACP
- Dr. Erica Steinbacher, Atrium Health
- Gwen Stowers, Multiply Church Concord
- Jaime Tippett Poe, CK Rider Transit
- Erica Vaughan, Habitat for Humanity
- Raijene Walker, United Way
- Kenny Wortman, Cabarrus County Board of Commissioners
To learn more about the CHNA process, view the full report when released, or find ways to get involved in solution-building efforts, visit www.healthycabarrus.org or www.cabarrushealth.org.
About Cabarrus Health Alliance: Cabarrus Health Alliance is the public health authority of Cabarrus County. Cabarrus Health Alliance is an autonomous organization providing services and programs to meet public health needs. Cabarrus Health Alliance is a leader in public health and is nationally recognized for its innovation.