UHF
MINNETONKA, Minn. – Each year, the United Health Foundation publishes a comprehensive heath ranking of all fifty states. This is the 28th edition of America’s Health Rankings, making it the longest-running report of its kind.
This year, Kansas’ overall ranking is 25, which is up two spots from 2016.
Kansas – 25
Strengths:
- Low prevalence of frequent physical distress
- Low prevalence of low birthweight
- Low drug death rate
Challenges:
- Lower number of dentists
- High incidence of pertussis
- Low per capita public health funding
Highlights:
- In the past year, obesity decreased 9% from 34.2% to 31.2% of adults
- In the past five years, drug deaths increased 23% from 9.6 to 11.8 deaths per 100,000 population
- In the past year, infant mortality decreased 5% from 6.4 to 6.1 deaths per 1,000 live births
- In the past four years, cardiovascular deaths increased 5% from 242.4 to 253.5 deaths per 100,000 population
- In the past 10 years, air pollution decreased 29% from 10.3 to 7.3 micrograms of fine particles per cubic meter
Ranking:
- Kansas is 25th this year; it was 27th in 2016
- The state ranks 31st for senior health and 25th for the health of women and children
For additional reference of where the states stand compared to others in the Midwest, Missouri ranks 40, Nebraska ranks 13 and Iowa ranks 15.
For the America’s Health Rankings annual full annual report, including information on the nation’s overall health, visit: https://americashealthrankings.org/.