10 best, worst states for healthcare

By Kelly Gooch for Becker’s Hospital Review 

Americans receive the best healthcare in Massachusetts, according to an Aug. 2 state ranking published by personal finance website WalletHub.

For the ranking, WalletHub compared the 50 states and Washington, D.C., across 44 measures of cost, accessibility and outcome. Measures ranged from cost of medical visit and average monthly insurance premium to hospital beds per capita and life expectancy.

Each measure was graded on a 100-point scale, with a score of 100 representing the best healthcare at the most reasonable cost. Analysts determined each state and Washington, D.C.’s weighted average across all measures to calculate its overall score. More information about the methodology is available here.

Here are the 10 best states for healthcare based on the analysis:

1. Massachusetts
2. Rhode Island
3. Minnesota
4. Hawaii
5. Maryland
6. Vermont
7. Colorado
8. Iowa
9. Connecticut
10. South Dakota

Here are the 10 worst states for healthcare based on the analysis:

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