According to the CDC, 87.6 percent of the population has a regular place to go for medical care.
But the cost and service quality of that care can vary widely from state to state.
Georgia comes in pretty low on the spectrum at number 46.
The overall health of the population, more advanced medical equipment and a general lack of awareness regarding the best types of treatment, for instance, can all affect costs. Today, the average American spends more than $10,000 per year on personal health care, according to the most recent estimates from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. That’s about 17.9 percent of the U.S. GDP.
But higher costs don’t necessarily translate to better results. According to a study by the Kaiser Family Foundation, the U.S. lags behind several other wealthy nations on several measures, such as health coverage, life expectancy and disease burden, which measures longevity and quality of life. However, the U.S. has improved in giving more healthcare access for people in worse health, and healthcare cost growth has slowed somewhat.
Conditions aren’t uniform across the U.S., though. To determine where Americans receive the best and worst health care, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 43 measures of cost, accessibility and outcome. Read on for our findings, expert insight on the future of American health care and a full description of our methodology.
According to the CDC, 87.6 percent of the population has a regular place to go for medical care. But the cost and service quality of that care can vary widely from state to state. The overall health of the population, more advanced medical equipment and a general lack of awareness regarding the best types of treatment, for instance, can all affect costs. Today, the average American spends more than $10,000 per year on personal health care, according to the most recent estimates from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. That’s about 17.9 percent of the U.S. GDP.
But higher costs don’t necessarily translate to better results. According to a study by the Kaiser Family Foundation, the U.S. lags behind several other wealthy nations on several measures, such as health coverage, life expectancy and disease burden, which measures longevity and quality of life. However, the U.S. has improved in giving more healthcare access for people in worse health, and healthcare cost growth has slowed somewhat.
Conditions aren’t uniform across the U.S., though. To determine where Americans receive the best and worst health care, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 43 measures of cost, accessibility and outcome. Read on for our findings, expert insight on the future of American health care and a full description of our methodology. 1 Main Findings 2 Ask the Experts 3 Methodology
Main Findings
115151
Embed on your website
States with Best Health Care Systems
Overall Rank (1 = Best) | State | Total Score | ‘Cost’ Rank | ‘Access’ Rank | ‘Outcomes’ Rank |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Minnesota | 63.79 | 2 | 4 | 9 |
2 | Massachusetts | 62.33 | 35 | 2 | 1 |
3 | Rhode Island | 62.12 | 11 | 5 | 6 |
4 | District of Columbia | 61.38 | 1 | 3 | 26 |
5 | Vermont | 60.13 | 5 | 34 | 4 |
6 | New Hampshire | 59.80 | 40 | 8 | 2 |
7 | Hawaii | 59.64 | 8 | 36 | 5 |
8 | Maine | 58.44 | 38 | 1 | 13 |
9 | North Dakota | 58.21 | 3 | 9 | 22 |
10 | Iowa | 57.27 | 15 | 17 | 14 |
11 | Colorado | 56.77 | 47 | 12 | 3 |
12 | Maryland | 56.71 | 4 | 21 | 23 |
13 | Connecticut | 56.44 | 44 | 11 | 7 |
14 | Kansas | 56.05 | 7 | 16 | 27 |
15 | Pennsylvania | 55.70 | 13 | 13 | 25 |
16 | Wisconsin | 55.46 | 45 | 6 | 10 |
17 | Montana | 55.44 | 21 | 19 | 18 |
18 | South Dakota | 55.15 | 17 | 15 | 24 |
19 | Utah | 55.12 | 32 | 41 | 8 |
20 | Michigan | 55.09 | 6 | 18 | 30 |
21 | Virginia | 54.63 | 25 | 35 | 12 |
22 | Nebraska | 53.64 | 43 | 10 | 17 |
23 | New Jersey | 53.39 | 14 | 30 | 28 |
24 | New York | 52.26 | 29 | 24 | 29 |
25 | Ohio | 52.22 | 10 | 22 | 37 |
26 | Illinois | 52.20 | 24 | 23 | 32 |
27 | Wyoming | 52.14 | 36 | 37 | 16 |
28 | Idaho | 52.02 | 30 | 43 | 19 |
29 | Delaware | 51.79 | 42 | 27 | 21 |
30 | California | 51.19 | 39 | 42 | 20 |
31 | New Mexico | 50.95 | 19 | 31 | 36 |
32 | Washington | 49.85 | 48 | 44 | 11 |
33 | Oregon | 49.43 | 49 | 29 | 15 |
34 | Indiana | 49.29 | 9 | 38 | 40 |
35 | Kentucky | 49.11 | 16 | 14 | 47 |
36 | Tennessee | 48.05 | 18 | 32 | 42 |
37 | Missouri | 47.50 | 31 | 25 | 41 |
38 | Nevada | 47.37 | 22 | 47 | 39 |
39 | Florida | 47.37 | 34 | 46 | 35 |
40 | West Virginia | 47.35 | 41 | 7 | 45 |
41 | Arizona | 46.74 | 37 | 48 | 34 |
42 | Alabama | 46.59 | 12 | 45 | 46 |
43 | Texas | 45.94 | 28 | 51 | 38 |
44 | Louisiana | 44.50 | 33 | 20 | 49 |
45 | Oklahoma | 44.47 | 26 | 39 | 48 |
46 | Georgia | 44.45 | 23 | 49 | 44 |
47 | Arkansas | 43.48 | 20 | 33 | 50 |
48 | South Carolina | 42.96 | 46 | 40 | 43 |
49 | Mississippi | 42.76 | 27 | 28 | 51 |
50 | North Carolina | 42.63 | 50 | 50 | 33 |
51 | Alaska | 42.21 | 51 | 26 | 31 |