The United Health Foundation, a nonprofit that works to better the healthcare industry, recently published a report analyzing the best and worst states for preventive care, according to Business Insider.
The United Health Foundation's report is based on a series of government reports and studies, including the 2014 National Immunization Survey.
The report assessed the following preventive health measures in each state:
- Access to healthcare, measured by the percentage of adults who had health insurance and visited a physician and dentist annually
- Immunization rates among children and adults
- Access to chronic disease prevention methods, measured by the percentage of adults who were informed they had high blood pressure, had a colorectal cancer screening or had their cholesterol checked
Here are the best and worst states in each of those categories of preventive care, according to the report. They are ranked alphabetically.
Access to healthcare
Best states:
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- Hawaii
- Iowa
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Minnesota
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Wisconsin
Worst states:
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- Georgia
- Louisiana
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- South Carolina
- Texas
Immunization rates
Best states:
- Colorado
- Delaware
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- Nebraska
- New Hampshire
- North Carolina
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
Worst states:
- Alaska
- Arkansas
- Florida
- Idaho
- Michigan
- Mississippi
- Nevada
- New Jersey
- Texas
- Wyoming
Access to chronic disease prevention methods
Best states:
- Connecticut
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Minnesota
- New Hampshire
- New York
- Rhode Island
- Vermont
- Virginia
Worst states:
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arkansas
- Idaho
- Indiana
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Nevada
- New Mexico
- Oklahoma