Data in the report, complied by the United Health foundation over the last year, showed that Hawaii reported the lowest rates of obesity, preventable hospitalizations, and cancer deaths in the country.
Bottom of the table was Mississippi, whose residents displayed a "high prevalence of physical inactivity." In America's Health Rankings 25-year-history, Mississippi has never ranked higher than 48th in the list.
Another red flag raised over Mississippi in the report was the frequency of infants being born with low average birth weights. Despite the fact that infant mortality in the state decreased by 30 percent since 1990, Mississippi still has the highest rate in the United States.
In general, US health care has shown significant progress in recent decades. For instance, since 1990 infant mortality rates have dropped by 41 percent, while the number of deaths from heart diseases fell by 38 percent. Cases of adult obesity, however, have increased from 27.6 percent to 29.4 percent.
The America's Health Rankings annual reports are based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Medical Association and other sources.
