Why is Mississippi one of the worst states to raise a family? Here’s what to know
Raising a family is hard work and a recent study has shown that it can be even harder depending on which state you call home.
Birth Injury Lawyers Group found the best and worst U.S. states to raise a family based on 16 criteria in four categories.
So, why was Mississippi ranked one of the worst states to raise a family? Here’s what to know:
Mississippi is one of the worst states to raise a family
The study evaluated each state based on four categories: health & safety, education and childcare, affordability and socioeconomics.
Each U.S. state was scored in every category and then ranked based on how high or low their score was.
Mississippi was ranked the third worst state to raise a family and here’s why:
Mississippi’s final score of 52.59 made the state’s ranking no. 48 overall.
Health & Safety: Mississippi received a health and safety score of 44.24 because of the state’s high rate of children without health insurance at 5.5% and high infant mortality rates at 9.39 deaths per 100,000 live births.
Education & Child Care: Mississippi scored a 46.20 in this category because of its need to improve K-12 education and early childhood services as well as the state’s low graduation rates.
Affordability: This was Mississippi’s best score (74.62) because of the state’s median home price of $238,600 and an average monthly wage of $3,949.
Socioeconomics: Socioeconomic conditions scored the state a 45.30 because of unemployment rates (6.1%) and a low average credit score of 680.
How other states ranked
Here’s which states were ranked the best to raise a family:
Massachusetts was ranked the best state to raise a family with a score of 77.14. The state scored high in health and safety, affordability and education/childcare.
Vermont was ranked second best with a score of 76.54. The state had high scores in areas of health and safety as well as socioeconomics.
North Dakota ranked the third best state to raise a family and received a score of 75.75. The state received high scores in categories of affordability and socioeconomics.
Here’s which states were ranked the worst to raise a family:
Nevada was ranked the absolute worst state to raise a family and received an overall score of 49.57. Nevada scored extremely low in areas of education and childcare as well as socioeconomics.
Louisiana ranked no. 49 overall with a score of 52.37. The state scored low in areas of socioeconomic status as well as education and childcare.
California ranked no. 47 overall and received a score of 53.87 overall. California scored low in the categories of socioeconomics and education/childcare.
What do you think of this study? Let me know in the comments or email me at cmadden@mcclatchy.com
