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Study: Missouri Among Least Healthy States

United Health Foundation

Missouri is one of the least healthy states, according to a new report by the American Public Health Association and the United Health Foundation.The Show Me State ranked 42nd.

Missouri has a high smoking rate, a sedentary lifestyle, an expanding waistline, low public health care spending and low immunization coverage.

That’s why the United Health Foundation ranked Missouri as one of the most unhealthy states.

Dr. Robert W. Smith is the Senior Medical Director for United Healthcare Clinical Services. He says these problems are reflecting themselves in the cost of healthcare.

“Our hospitals have trouble making adequate amounts of money to take care of the uninsured, difficulty continuing to provide the services I think we all want to have,” Smith said. “The more sick people we have with hypertension and heart disease, the more we utilize resources.”

Missouri’s health ranking has steadily dropped since 1990, when it was ranked 24th.

It’s not all gloom and doom. Smith says Missouri has a few things going in its favor.

“A lot of our people are well educated. We have a lot of wonderful universities. We’ve got a lot of high school graduates here. We get a lot of excellent prenatal care, where some other people struggle with prenatal care. So we’re doing pretty well in some of the measures that they produced,” Smith said.

Missouri has the 9th highest high school graduation rate and has the 23rd lowest rate of low birthweight babies.