Iowa Leads Nation in Kids' Health Care
May 28, 2008 -- Iowa has the best overall health care system for children, according to a report by a health policy research group. Vermont is ranked second.
The two states lead the country in making sure children have access to regular health care and preventive services, says the Commonwealth Fund, a nonprofit organization.
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The report also ranks Massachusetts close to the top of the list because the state has among the lowest rate of uninsured children and provides the best preventive and follow-up care in the country.
"States can learn from the best states in the nation," says Commonwealth Fund President Karen Davis.
The report measured states on factors such as rates of uninsured children, how many children had a regular doctor or other source of care, overall costs, and health care quality.
Vermont has a law guaranteeing health coverage to all its children. Iowa has a new law aiming for universal health coverage for children within the next three years. At the top of the list along with those two states and Massachusetts are Maine, New Hampshire, Ohio, and Hawaii.
Oklahoma was at the bottom of the report's rankings. Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arizona also ranked near the bottom.
Wide Variation in States
The report also shows wide swings in how states meet kids' basic health needs, says Edward L. Schor, MD, a pediatrician and vice president of the Commonwealth Fund.
For example, 94% of children in Massachusetts -- but only 67% in Nevada -- had received five recommended immunizations by 36 months of age. Meanwhile, nearly 80% of kids in New Hampshire have a regular doctor available for medical advice, care, and follow-up. Just 30% of kids in Mississippi had a regular source of care.
"We know children who have a 'medical home' have better quality of care," Schor says.
About 20% of children in Texas have no health insurance, the report shows. The country would have nearly 4.7 million fewer uninsured children if all states achieved Michigan's 5% rate of children without health coverage, it shows.
"We believe the nation should ensure health coverage for all children," Schor says.
State Rankings
Here is a list of the report's rankings of states and the District of Columbia:
- Iowa
- Vermont
- Maine
- Massachusetts
- New Hampshire
- Ohio
- Hawaii
- Rhode Island
- Kentucky
- Kansas
- Wisconsin
- Michigan
- Nebraska
- Alabama, Connecticut
- South Dakota, Wyoming
- Washington
- Pennsylvania
- West Virginia
- North Dakota
- Indiana
- Minnesota, Virginia
- New York
- Utah
- Maryland
- Missouri, Montana
- Tennessee
- District of Columbia, North Carolina
- Idaho
- California, Colorado
- South Carolina
- Delaware
- Georgia, Illinois
- New Mexico
- Alaska
- New Jersey
- Oregon
- Arkansas
- Nevada
- Texas
- Arizona
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Florida
- Oklahoma
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