Maine ranks among top 10 states for health care

Map / Courtesy of WalletHub In a nationwide WalletHub ranking of the best and worst states for health care systems, Maine came in at No. 9.

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By Renee Cordes

When it comes to high-quality health care, Maine places among the top 10 states in a ranking by WalletHub, the personal finance website.

The Pine Tree State ranked No. 9, sandwiched between Vermont at No. 8 and Colorado at No. 10.

To determine the best and worst states for health care, WalletHub researchers looked at health care costs, access and outcomes, which were further broken down into 44 relevant metrics. Each state and D.C. was then assigned a weighted average across all metrics for an overall score and ranking.

Minnesota ranked No. 1 overall, followed by Rhode Island at No. 2 and South Dakota at No. 3. Mississippi ranked lowest in the comparison, at No. 51.

Elsewhere in New England, New Hampshire was No. 5, Massachusetts was No. 6, and Connecticut trailed at No. 24.

In the sub-categories, Maine ranked No. 4 for health care access, which took into account factors including the number of hospital beds per capita and average emergency wait-room times.

Maine ranked No. 15 for health care outcomes, which assigned points for infant, child and maternal mortality rates as well as life expectancy, and the state was No. 24 in the sub-category of health care cost.

Citing an estimate from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, WalletHub researchers noted that the average American spends nearly $13,500 per year on personal health care.

"That's a daunting statistic considering that many people are already struggling financially due to inflation and lots of debt," the researchers wrote.