Findings

2006 Results

America’s Health Rankings ™– 2006 Edition shows Minnesota at the top of the list of healthiest states.  Minnesota has been among the top two states since 1990.  Vermont is ranked second this year, the same as last year.  It has moved up in the rankings from eighth in 2001 to its current position.  New Hampshire is number three, followed by Hawaii, Connecticut and Utah.  Louisiana is 50^th and the least healthy state, while Mississippi is 49^th.  South Carolina, Tennessee and Arkansas complete the bottom five states.

Minnesota is first this year, a position it has held for 11 of the 17 years since the 1990 Edition. While it still holds the number one position, the  large difference between Minnesota and the average state has declined in the last three years.  Minnesota’s strengths include ranking first for a low rate of cardiovascular deaths, a low premature death rate and a low percentage of uninsured population.  It is also in the top five states with a low percentage of children in poverty, a low infant mortality rate, a low occupational fatalities rate, a low rate of motor vehicle deaths and a high rate of high school graduation.  Minnesota’s biggest challenges are a high prevalence of obesity at 23.7 percent of the population, limited access to adequate prenatal care with 75.9 percent of pregnant women receiving adequate prenatal care, a moderate violent crime rate at 297 offenses per 100,000 population and a high prevalence of smoking at 20.0 percent of the population.   

Louisiana is 50^th this year, down from 49^th in the 2005 Edition.  It has been in the bottom two states since the 1990 Edition.  The state ranks well for ready access to adequate prenatal care with 82.8 percent of pregnant receiving adequate care and few poor mental health days per month with 2.7 days lost in the previous 30 days.  It ranks in the bottom five states on six of the 18 measures with a high prevalence of obesity, a high occupational fatalities rate, a high percentage of children in poverty, a high infant mortality rate, a high rate of cancer deaths and a high premature death rate. It also ranks in the bottom 10 states for eight other measures.   

Table 4 lists the score and ranking for each of the 50 states. 

Scores presented in the tables indicate the percentage a state is above or below the national norm.  For example, a state with a score of 20 is 20 percent above the national average for that component.  A negative score means the state is below the national average.  When comparing states from year to year, differences in score are more important than changes in ranking.

Table 4 - 2006 Overall America's Health Rankings