10 states with the highest, lowest life expectancy

by Alia Paavola for Becker’s Hospital Review

The state where you live can significantly impact the duration of your life, suggests a new study conducted by the U.S. Burden of Disease Collaborators published in JAMA.

For the study, called “The State of U.S. Health, 1990-2016 Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Among U.S. States,” researchers analyzed published studies and poured over available data sets to estimate the burden of disease by age, sex, geography and year. With the data collected, the study highlights state-by-state life expectancy estimates from 1990 and 2016. For the report, both male and female life expectancies were averaged into one age.

Here are 10 states with the highest life expectancy in 2016, presented from highest to lowest according to average life expectancy. Note that some states are tied.

1.  Hawaii- 81.3
2. California- 80.9
3. Connecticut- 80.8
4. Minnesota- 80.8
5. New York- 80.5
6. Massachusetts- 80.4
7. Colorado- 80.2
8. New Jersey- 80.2
9. Washington- 80.2
10. Vermont- 79.9

Here are 10 states with the lowest life expectancy in 2016, presented from lowest to highest according to average life expectancy. Note that some states are tied.

1. Mississippi- 74.7
2. West Virginia- 75.3
3. Alabama -75.4
4. Louisiana- 75.6
5. Oklahoma-75.7
6. Kentucky 75.8
7. Arkansas- 75.8
8. Tennessee- 76.1
9. South Carolina 76.8
10. Indiana- 77.2