//2019’s Best and Worst States for Healthcare

2019’s Best and Worst States for Healthcare

Share with friends

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.

Source: WalletHub

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
1Minnesota63.79249
2Massachusetts62.333521
3Rhode Island62.121156
4District of Columbia61.381326
5Vermont60.135344
6New Hampshire59.804082
7Hawaii59.648365
8Maine58.4438113
9North Dakota58.213922
10Iowa57.27151714
11Colorado56.7747123
12Maryland56.7142123
13Connecticut56.4444117
14Kansas56.0571627
15Pennsylvania55.70131325
16Wisconsin55.4645610
17Montana55.44211918
18South Dakota55.15171524
19Utah55.1232418
20Michigan55.0961830
21Virginia54.63253512
22Nebraska53.64431017
23New Jersey53.39143028
24New York52.26292429
25Ohio52.22102237
26Illinois52.20242332
27Wyoming52.14363716
28Idaho52.02304319
29Delaware51.79422721
30California51.19394220
31New Mexico50.95193136
32Washington49.85484411
33Oregon49.43492915
34Indiana49.2993840
35Kentucky49.11161447
36Tennessee48.05183242
37Missouri47.50312541
38Nevada47.37224739
39Florida47.37344635
40West Virginia47.3541745
41Arizona46.74374834
42Alabama46.59124546
43Texas45.94285138
44Louisiana44.50332049
45Oklahoma44.47263948
46Georgia44.45234944
47Arkansas43.48203350
48South Carolina42.96464043
49Mississippi42.76272851
50North Carolina42.63505033
51Alaska42.21512631