Vermont as the Healthiest State

Louisiana Moves into Last Place

LAWRENCE, KS. For the sixth time in seven years, Vermont has earned the title of the nation’s Healthiest State. The 15th annual award was announced in Health Care State Rankings 2007, a reference book of state health statistics published this week by Morgan Quitno Press of Lawrence, Kansas. At the opposite end of the rankings scale, Louisiana moved into last place, a position it last held in 2005.

“Vermont certainly has earned bragging rights to the Healthiest State honors,” said Scott Morgan, President of Morgan Quitno Press. “It offers great access to primary care doctors, has a low teen birth rate and a high percentage of citizens covered by health insurance. In addition, the people of Vermont are physically fit: it has one of the lowest obesity rates among states and some of the highest percentages of citizens who exercise.”

The 15th annual Healthiest State Award is based on 21 health-related factors from Health Care State Rankings 2007, an annual reference book that compares the 50 United States in more than 500 health care categories. Factors considered include infant mortality rates, the percent of population not covered by health insurance, per capita expenditures for health care, percent of population lacking access to primary medical care, childhood immunization rates, and percent of adults who smoke.

"Our award reflects which states’ citizens have the best access to health care providers, affordable health care services and a generally healthy population," Morgan said.

Following Vermont were Minnesota in second place, Massachusetts in third, Maine in fourth and New Hampshire in fifth. Bringing up the end of the rankings scale were Louisiana in last place, New Mexico in 49th, Mississippi in 48th, Nevada in 47th and Florida in 46th place.

The Healthiest State Award is one of six designations announced annually by Morgan Quitno Press in conjunction with the publication of its annual reference books. These other annual awards name the nation’s Safest City and Metro Area (based on data from City Crime Rankings), the Most Livable State (based on data from State Rankings), the Safest and Most Dangerous States (based on data from Crime State Rankings), the Smartest State (based on data from Education State Rankings), and the Most Improved State (based on data from State Trends.)

Additional information about the 2007 Healthiest State Award, including rankings for all 50 states, a list of factors used to determine the results and an explanation of methodology, is available directly from Morgan Quitno Press at www.statestats.com or by calling (785) 841-3534.

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