Where
does your state rank?
by Considerable
Staff | August 7, 2019
As a national debate
rages over healthcare, it can be hard to figure out its real-world
effectiveness in your own area.
What’s not discussed
in 10-second soundbites is your likely healthcare outcome. This lesser-known
metric is probably the most important one, because it indicates whether or not
you will be healthy after seeing a doctor.
WalletHub compared
all 50 states and the District of Columbia based on price and access as well as
outcomes.
The other point
that’s often lost in the noise is that healthcare experiences vary widely
depending on what state you’re living in.
To crack through the
noise and establish an accurate base of knowledge for each state’s healthcare
status, WalletHub
compared all 50 states and the District of Columbia based on price
and access as well as outcomes. Then, everyone was ranked from 1 to 51 based on
an equally weighted points system.
Of the outcome
category’s 33.33 possible points, life expectancy had a double weight (4.44
points possible), while 2.22 possible points were doled out for outcomes such
as heart disease, incidents of cancer, and readmissions. Cost and access issues
were weighted equally, including dental services.
The results were
interesting. By adding all points, the best healthcare was found in Minnesota,
though it did not top any of the categories — only ranking in the top 10.
Massachusetts – No. 1
for outcomes and No. 2 for access — scored the second-highest overall because
its 35th ranking for cost was a little pricey.
Rhode Island has the
third-best healthcare, with good numbers across the board, but the District of
Columbia with the best cost (No. 1) and excellent access (No. 3) finished
fourth overall despite its average (No. 26) outcomes.
Vermont took fifth
because its solid cost (No. 5) and outcomes (No. 4) were brought down by fair
access (No. 34). If you get sick in Vermont, you’ll be OK — if you can
find a doctor.
Alaska finished dead
last. While its outcomes (No. 31) and access (No. 26) were in the middle of the
pack, the state’s cost was the highest across the entire survey.
North Carolina was
second-to-last with a super-high cost and limited access (No. 50 for both
categories), yet the Tar Heels have fairly average outcomes (No. 33) despite
those obstacles.
Mississippi had the
poorest outcomes but gained a couple points overall with average prices (No.
27) and access (No. 28). South Carolina was ranked 48 overall with bad scores
across all categories, and Arkansas was 47 overall because of its poor
outcomes, which at No. 50 was only better than Mississippi.
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