Hawaii and Massachusetts were the top two ranked states in the composite measure capturing health outcomes and healthy behaviors in Commonwealth Fund's "2023 Scorecard of State Health System Performance."
The report was published June 22 and is generally based on data from 2021, evaluating all 50 states across 58 performance indicators. Below is how states ranked on health outcomes and healthy behaviors. This ranking was based on 10 indicators, including measures of premature death, health status, health risk behaviors and factors (such as smoking and obesity), and tooth loss.
The five lowest-ranked states all had premature death rates "far above average and that increased dramatically during the pandemic," — an increase that was driven by both COVID-19 and overdose deaths, according to the report.
The ranking includes ties.
1. Hawaii
1. Massachusetts
3. Utah
4. New Jersey
5. Minnesota
6. New York
7. Connecticut
8. Washington
9. New Hampshire
10. California
11. Colorado
12. Nebraska
12. Rhode Island
14. Maryland
15. Idaho
16. Illinois
17. Vermont
18. Virginia
19. Wisconsin
20. District of Columbia
21. North Dakota
22. Oregon
23. Pennsylvania
24. Iowa
25. Florida
26. Kansas
27. Delaware
28. Montana
29. Texas
30. Maine
30. North Carolina
32. Arizona
33. Georgia
34. Michigan
34. Wyoming
36. Nevada
37. South Dakota
38. Indiana
39. Ohio
40. Missouri
41. Alaska
42. South Carolina
43. Alabama
44. Oklahoma
45. Tennessee
46. Louisiana
47. New Mexico
48. Arkansas
49. Kentucky
50. Mississippi
51. West Virginia