This study investigates health care infrastructure and social determinants of health in counties with the five highest discharge rates in the state of Florida. Data was obtained from the Hospital Cost and Utilization Project’s (HCUP) 2018 State Inpatient Database (SID) that was collected by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The study population consisted of all patients with diabetes who were admitted to an acute care center in the state of Florida in the year 2018. The primary outcome was hospital discharge rate per 10,000 residents. Our analysis depicted that the counties with the highest healthcare utilization for diabetic patients occurred in rural, ethnically non-diverse, low-income areas. We concluded that in the five counties with the highest diabetes discharge rates in the state of Florida, a majority of the patients belonged to the diagnosis related group diabetes with complications/comorbidities. In two of the five counties analyzed, there were more patients belonging to the diagnosis related group diabetes with major complications/comorbidities compared to those without any complications/comorbidities. Healthcare infrastructure improvements, specifically the addition of acute care hospitals are necessary in order to curb the increasing prevalence of diabetes with complications or comorbidities, as well as the prevalence of diabetes with major complications or comorbidities. Additionally, demographic trends such as an aging population pose further consequences in regard to the prevalence of diabetes and the ability to access quality healthcare. The economic burden will likely be too much to bear if not immediately addressed.       Keywords: social determinants of health, healthcare utilization, diabetes, Florida, demographics, unnecessary hospitalizations, discharge rates, acute care, healthcare administrators, healthcare infrastructure