SmartAsset: R.I. eighth best in nation for health care access

SMARTASSET said Rhode Island ranked eighth in the nation for health care access. Maryland topped the list, followed by Minnesota and Massachusetts. / COURTESY SMARTASSET
SMARTASSET said Rhode Island ranked eighth in the nation for health care access. Maryland topped the list, followed by Minnesota and Massachusetts. / COURTESY SMARTASSET

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island ranked in the top 10 for being one of the best states for health care access, according to SmartAsset.
The financial technology company said Rhode Island ranked eighth on the list.
It said like several other New England states, Rhode Island rates well for overall insurance coverage, but poorly for the cost of purchasing insurance on the individual market, as the average monthly price is $328.09, equal to 10 percent of median income, seventh-highest in the country.
Still, the Ocean State has the eighth-highest insurance coverage rate for the general population at nearly 93 percent and the fourth-highest coverage rate for people in low-income households at nearly 86 percent. The percentage of children who are insured is 96.7 percent, again one of the highest rates in the nation.
In subcategories of physician access and prevention and treatment, Rhode Island ranked eighth and third, respectively.
Maryland was No. 1 for a low monthly average premium cost of $180 and high number of insured at 92.1 percent. Texas was last with 80.9 percent of the population insured.
To come up with its rankings, SmartAsset said it looked at total insurance rate, children’s insurance rate, low-income insurance rate, average monthly insurance premium, physician access index and average annual insurance costs as a percentage of median individual income, as well as prevention and treatment measures.

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