States with highest health costs tend to rank lowest in care
By Admin | October 09, 2017
In Louisiana and Oklahoma, families spend 1.7 percent of their income, on average, on health expenses. In New York and New Jersey, families averaged closer to one percent. However, US News ranked Louisiana and Oklahoma in the bottom five states when it comes to healthcare.
Both states have higher numbers of obesity and smoking, along with lower life expectancies when compared to other states. And less people have health insurance.
This and much more data is the result of a study by JPMorgan Chase Institute, which surveyed the anonymized spending data of 2.3 million Chase customers between 2013 and 2016. The study was released the day after the latest failed attempt at repealing the Affordable Healthcare Act.
The study also showed that out-of-pocket spending increased between 2015 and 2016 for older and lower-income people, as well as for females. And out-of-pocket expenses are also concentrated across a small number of people, something JPMorgan Chase says shows the financial burden of long-term health conditions.
Out-of-pocket health care expenses are highly concentrated across a relatively small number of people, illustrating the financial burden of long-term health conditions, the report said. And the cost burden of out-of-pocket health spending increased between 2015 and 2016 for account holders who were older, lower-income or female.
For more, read “Health Expenses Vary Greatly by State” by US News and World Report.
