10 best states for healthcare: US News

U.S. News & World Report released its annual Best States rankings July 28, evaluating all 50 states on how they best serve their residents across eight categories: healthcare, education, economy, infrastructure, opportunity, fiscal stability, crime and corrections, and natural environment. Utah ranked No. 1 overall for the fourth consecutive year.

Healthcare accounts for 15.51% of each state’s overall Best States score, the second-highest weight of the eight categories, according to the methodology. U.S. News rankings in the healthcare category are based on data from the CDC, CMS and other sources reflecting healthcare access, healthcare quality and public health outcomes. Access metrics include health insurance enrollment, adult and child wellness visits, healthcare affordability and dental visits. Quality metrics include hospital quality, nursing home quality and Medicare quality. Public health metrics include obesity rate, smoking rate, infant mortality, suicide rate and mental health. Metrics ranged from child wellness visits to adult obesity rate. More information on the methodology is available here. 

The best states for healthcare:

1. Hawaii
2. Massachusetts
3. Connecticut
4. Rhode Island
5. Maryland
6. New Jersey
7. California
8. New York
9. New Hampshire
10. Colorado

The bottom 10 states for healthcare:

1. Mississippi
2. West Virginia
3. Oklahoma
4. Arkansas
5. Kentucky
6. Louisiana
7. Alabama
8. Missouri
9. Nevada
10. Montana

U.S. News also ranked states by the following healthcare subcategories.

The top five states for healthcare access:

1. Massachusetts
2. Hawaii
3. Connecticut
4. New Hampshire
5. Maryland

The bottom five states for healthcare access:

1. Mississippi
2. Alaska
3. Nevada
4. Wyoming
5. Oklahoma

The top five states for healthcare quality:

1. Hawaii
2. Colorado
3. Alaska
4. Delaware
5. Rhode Island

The bottom five states for healthcare quality:

1. West Virginia
2. Mississippi
3. Kentucky
4. Oklahoma
5. Louisiana

The top five states for public health:

1. New Jersey
2. Massachusetts
3. Hawaii
4. New York
5. California

The bottom five states for public health:

1. Arkansas
2. West Virginia
3. Tennessee
4. Oklahoma
5. Kentucky

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