Alaska comes in 29th in state health ranking

United Health Foundation has released its annual health ranking for each state, and Alaska is in the middle of the pack.

According to the report, Alaska ranks as the 29^th healthiest state in the Union, one spot higher than last year.

In a number of categories, Alaska ranks near or at the bottom. Alaska has the worst rates of chlamydia and violent crime in the country, and ranks in the bottom ten in high school graduation rate, infectious disease, immunizations, and the number of uninsured residents.

In some areas, though, Alaska does very well. The state has the lowest rate of low birthweight and the least disparity in health status between people who did and did not finish high school. Alaska is also in the top ten states for physical activity, public health funding, and dentists and mental health professionals per-capita. It also has some of the lowest rates of salmonella, diabetes, and preventable hospitalizations in the country.

In the past five years, there have been ups and downs in Alaska’s scores. Drug deaths have decreased slightly, and preventable hospitalizations have decreased by nearly forty percent. In the same timespan, violent crime, infant mortality, and the percentage of children in poverty have increased.

Overall, Massachusetts is ranked the healthiest state, and Mississippi is the least healthy state.