The data is based on an analysis of the 2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a survey that collects state-level data about U.S. residents regarding their health.
Kaiser defined “high-risk adults” as adults ages 60 years or older, and adults between the ages of 18 and 59 with heart disease, cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or diabetes.
Kaiser also included the following disclaimer: “We recognize that our collective understanding of risk factors will continue to evolve as the disease spreads, and as CDC and others learn more about its effects on different populations.”
Here are the U.S. states and the District of Columbia, ranked by percentage of adults at higher risk of developing a serious COVID-19 illness:
Note: The list includes ties and results in a numerical listing of 44.
1. West Virginia: 51.1 percent
2. Maine: 47.2
3. Arkansas: 46.5
Florida: 46.5
4. Alabama: 46.1
5. Kentucky: 45.5
6. South Carolina: 44.7
7. New Hampshire: 44.5
8. Tennessee: 44.2
9. Delaware: 43.9
10. Pennsylvania: 43.8
11. Missouri: 43.7
12. Mississippi: 43.6
Montana: 43.6
13. Vermont: 43.5
14. Ohio: 43.4
Oregon: 43.4
15. Michigan: 43.3
16. Louisiana: 43.2
17. Indiana: 42.8
New Mexico: 42.8
18. Oklahoma: 42.5
19. Rhode Island: 42.4
20. Arizona: 42.2
21. North Carolina: 41.9
22. Idaho: 41.4
23. Iowa: 41.2
24. Hawaii: 41.1
25. Kansas: 40.9
26. Connecticut: 40.8
27. Wyoming: 40.6
28. South Dakota: 40.5
29. Maryland: 40.2
30. Nebraska: 40
31. New Jersey: 39.8
32. Illinois: 39.7
Nevada: 39.7
New York: 39.7
Wisconsin: 39.7
33. Washington: 39.6
34. Georgia: 39.5
35. Virginia: 39.2
36. Massachusetts: 39
37. Minnesota: 38.8
38. North Dakota: 38
39. California: 37
40. Texas: 36.5
41. Colorado: 36.4
42. Alaska: 35.3
43. Utah: 33.5
44. District of Columbia: 30.9
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