New Jersey takes 10th spot in America’s Health Rankings

The annual America's Health Rankings report was released this week, placing New Jersey in the top 10 healthiest states in the country.

Coming in at No. 10, the state of New Jersey was praised for its low rate of drug deaths, low percentage of children in poverty, and most importantly, its ready availability of primary care physicians and dentists.

So where does Pennsylvania fit in? Well, when it comes to health in keystone state, it seems we've still got our work cut out for us.

Dropping three spots from last year's rankings, Pennsylvania came in at No. 29. The culprit? Obesity. According to the report, "In the past year, the prevalence of obesity increased from 28.6 percent to 29.1 percent of adults, with nearly 2.9 million adults considered obese in the state."

Hawaii earned top honors as the healthiest state in America primarily for its low prevalences of smoking & obesity and high immunization coverage among children. On the other side of the scale, Mississippi took last place for its high infant mortality rate and high prevalences of physical inactivity, obesity, & diabetes.

America's Health Rankings is the longest running annual assessment of the nation's health on a state-by-state basis. The report, put together annually by the United Health Foundation, American Public Health Association and Partnership for Prevention looks at the four groups of health determinants that can be affected: Individual choices, community & environment, public policy, and clinical care.

To learn more about the report, visit americashealthrankings.org.