New MS public health report card released. Here’s how the state improved & where it got worse
Mississippi officials released the 2025 public health report card, showing some improvements and some continued health challenges.
The annual public health report card is a “data-driven overview” of a number of health issues across the state, Mississippi State Department of Health officials said in a Jan. 21 news release. The most recent report card shows how the state did in 2024.
“We are making strides as our latest overall national health ranking puts Mississippi at 48, up from 50 just three years ago,” Dan Edney, MSDH executive director and state health officer said in the release. “Our goal is to not only get us off the bottom of national rankings, but to take us out of the conversation and become a model for how things can change.”
These are the state’s top health challenges and improvements as reflected in the 2025 report card.
What were MS’s top health challenges in 2024?
Mississippi’s top health challenges in 2024 are the following, according to the report card:
Infant mortality
Mississippi’s infant mortality rate is at its highest in more than a decade, with 9.7 deaths per 1,000 births, according to MSDH. The state has had the highest infant mortality rate out of any state for the last three years of report cards available on the MSDH website.
“Major contributors include congenital anomalies, preterm birth, low birth weight and SIDS,” state health officials said.
The state activated the OB System of Care as part of a statewide plan to better serve high-risk mothers and infants, according to MSDH.
Maternal mortality
Mississippi moved from 45th highest maternal mortality rates in 2023 to 49th in 2024, according to the report.
Firearm-related deaths
The state had the highest firearm-related mortality rate out of any state in 2024, the report card shows. There were 810 firearm-related deaths among Mississippi residents that year, officials said.
Obesity
Mississippi has the second-highest obesity rate per capita, up to 49th place from 48th place in 2023, according to the report card.
How has MS improved from 2023?
Despite Mississippi’s health challenges, the state did show some improvement in the following areas, according to the report card:
Opioid-related deaths
Mississippi had 301 opioid-related deaths in 2024, the 10th lowest opioid-related overdose death rate in the nation, officials said.
The number is down by about 39% from 2023, according to the respective reports.
Teen births and accidental deaths
The number of teen births and accidental deaths in Mississippi also decreased in 2024, according to the report card.
Teen births decreased by about 8% while accidental deaths decreased by about 9%, the report shows.
Vaccinations
Mississippi is ranked third in the nation for school-required vaccinations, officials said. For the 2024-2025 school year vaccination rates were more than 97.66%, according to the report.
This story was originally published January 28, 2026 at 8:27 AM.
