With Every Kid Healthy Week kicking off today, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2017’s Best & Worst States for Children’s Health Care.

In order to determine which states offer the most cost-effective and highest-quality health care for children, WalletHub’s analysts compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 28 key metrics. The data set ranges from share of children aged 0 to 17 in excellent or very good health to pediatricians and family doctors per capita.

Best States for Children’s
Health Care		 Worst States for Children’s
Health Care
1 Vermont 42 Oklahoma
2 Massachusetts 43 South Carolina
3 Connecticut 44 Arkansas
4 Iowa 45 Georgia
5 New Hampshire 46 Montana
6 Hawaii 47 Texas
7 Rhode Island 48 Alaska
8 Delaware 49 Arizona
9 District of Columbia 50 Mississippi
10 Minnesota 51 Nevada
Stethoscope Public domain image/Darnyi Zsóka
Stethoscope
Public domain image/Darnyi Zsóka

Best vs. Worst

  • Massachusetts has the lowest share of uninsured children aged 0 to 17, 1.5 percent, which is 8.7 times lower than in Nevada, registering the highest at 13.0 percent.
  • New Hampshire has the fewest infant deaths per 1,000 live births, 4.2, which is 2.2 times fewer than in Mississippi, registering the most at 9.3.
  • Hawaii has the lowest share of children aged 0 to 17 with unaffordable medical bills, 6.4 percent, which is 2.5 times lower than in Nevada, registering the highest at 15.8 percent.
  • The District of Columbia has the most pediatricians per 100,000 residents, 52.51, which is 28.2 times more than in Idaho, registering the fewest at 1.86.
  • Oregon has the lowest share of obese children aged 10 to 17, 9.9 percent, which is 2.2 times lower than in Mississippi, registering the highest at 21.7 percent.
  • Vermont has the highest share of children who had both medical and dental preventive-care visits in the past 12 months, 81.4 percent, which is 1.5 times higher than in Nevada, registering the lowest at 56.0 percent.
  • Michigan has the highest share of dentists participating in Medicaid for child dental services, 91.7 percent, which is 4.5 times higher than in Ohio, registering the lowest at 20.4 percent.