Mississippi is one of the worst states for health care, new study says. Here’s why
Mississippi is one of the worst states in the country for health care, according to a recent Harris Poll Survey shared by Forbes Advisor.
The Magnolia state ranked in fourth place behind Georgia, Alabama and North Carolina. Six of the 10 worst states for health care were in the South. None of the southern states ranked in the 10 best states.
Researchers broke down four categories into 24 metrics and weighed each metric for a total possible score of 100 for the state with the worst performance in each category.
Mississippi scored 84.7 out of 100, health outcomes and health access being the worst categories.
The state was at the bottom of the pile (100 out of 100) for a handful of outcome metrics, including the country’s worst mortality rates for infants (8.74 deaths per 1,000 live births), stroke victims (54.8 deaths per 100,000 state residents), influenza and pneumonia (22.57 deaths per 100,000 state residents) and kidney disease (21.8 deaths per 100,000 state residents).
The data listed Mississippi’s diabetes mortality rate at 38.53 deaths per 100,000 residents (the second worst in the country).
Mississippi’s access to health care score took hits for having the fewest physician assistants and second lowest number of critical care physicians.
In addition to outcomes and access, the states were ranked under the categories of quality of hospital care and cost. Data for the quality of hospital care came from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
In Mississippi hospitals, 15% of the patients polled said they received no written instructions for symptoms to watch out for after being discharged.
The state had the fifth highest rate (13.1%) of people who opted not to visit a doctor in the last 12 months because of the cost. The average annual insurance premium for single coverage through an employer was $1,468.
The 10 worst states for health care
Georgia with an overall score of 100 out of 100
Alabama, 87.03
North Carolina, 85.95
Mississippi, 84.7
South Carolina, 83.5
Arkansas, 82.39
New Mexico, 82.17
Texas, 81.6
Nevada,79.08
Indiana, 79.01
The 10 best states for health care
Minnesota, 0 out of 100 points
Massachusetts, 2.26
Rhode Island, 4.45
Connecticut, 5.09
Vermont, 10.72
New Hampshire, 20.4
Michigan, 22.94
Oregon, 23.05
Maine, 25.23
Pennsylvania, 26.81
This Mississippi city has one of the highest STD rates in the US, according to CDC
Mississippi nurse vacancy rates are their highest in at least a decade
