United States: Affordable healthcare forms the backbone of a healthy and just society, yet the landscape of access to such care is remarkably uneven across the United States.
The US remains the lone affluent nation without a comprehensive universal healthcare framework. Certain states experience particularly pronounced challenges in ensuring healthcare affordability and accessibility, as highlighted by Newsweek in the analysis below.
“Obtaining reasonably priced healthcare poses a significant hurdle for countless Americans,” remarked Zoi Galarraga, Senior Digital PR Manager at Forbes Advisor, the organization spearheading the research, in a conversation with Newsweek.
“A Gallup and West Health survey recently uncovered that only 55 percent of US adults are able to both access and afford high-quality healthcare when required.
“Moreover, a staggering 100 million Americans—accounting for nearly a third of the nation’s population—lack access to a consistent primary care source, as reported by the National Association of Community Health Centers.”
To delve into these inequities, Forbes Advisor evaluated all 50 states through 14 critical health indicators, which included the availability of hospital beds, the density of medical professionals (such as physicians, nurses, and community health centers), and the percentage of uninsured residents. Each state received a cumulative score based on these metrics.
“The most heavily weighted metrics we examined focused on barriers to accessing primary care. This includes the number of hospital beds per 1,000 residents and the density of primary care physicians, specialists, nurse practitioners, and physician assistants per 10,000 residents,” Galarraga explained.
From this analysis, the following ten states emerged as having the least accessible healthcare services:
– Utah
– Nevada
– Texas
– Arizona
– Georgia
– South Carolina
– Indiana
– Wyoming
– Idaho
– North Carolina
What fuels these significant disparities? “In certain states, healthcare access is more difficult due to factors like elevated costs, insufficient insurance coverage, and a shortage of healthcare providers,” Galarraga noted. “This study highlights the states grappling with the most significant barriers to healthcare access.”
Utah ranks first on this list, hindered by a scarcity of healthcare professionals and a limited number of hospital beds. Additionally, Utah employers contribute the second-lowest proportion of annual health insurance premiums for employees.
Nevada, ranking second, suffers from the lowest ratio of primary care physicians relative to its population. Texas, positioned third, has the highest percentage of uninsured residents and also leads in the percentage of individuals unable to afford a doctor’s visit.
Galarraga added that it wasn’t surprising to see five Western states among the top 10 with the least accessible healthcare, as previous findings from Forbes Advisor’s 2023 report on the best and worst states for healthcare revealed similar trends.
What steps can be taken to mitigate these disparities? “According to the Department of Health and Human Services, digital innovations like telehealth can enhance access to primary care by minimizing transportation-related barriers and extending services in multiple languages,” Galarraga said.
“Additionally, having optimal health insurance plays a key role in increasing access to and reducing the costs associated with essential healthcare services. Uninsured individuals are less likely to receive preventative and screening services promptly and are less likely to establish a regular primary care provider.”