8 of the 10 states with the highest shares of residents with medical debt were Southern: West Virginia (24%), South Carolina (22%), North Carolina (20%), Louisiana (18%), Arkansas (18%), Tennessee (18%), Georgia (17%), and Kentucky (17%).

Provisional data for 2021 shows that maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in the U.S. spiked to 33. Among maternal deaths, racial disparities persist. Pregnancy-related deaths in the U.S. were 2.6 times more likely for Black people (70) than for white people (27) during 2021.

In 2021, working-age death rates from “external causes” were 33% higher in Southern states than elsewhere in the U.S. Researchers have found that paid sick leave reduces deaths from these “external causes.” The U.S. is the only wealthy country that does not mandate paid sick leave for workers.

Despite substantial new federal subsidies, 11 states (7 of them in the South) have still not adopted Medicaid expansion. Texas, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi— all states that did not adopt Medicaid expansion— had very high uninsured rates, of 24% (the highest), 19%, 18%, and 18%, respectively.

Motor vehicle death rates in the U.S. increased two consecutive years, reaching 14.3 in 2021. Non-white Americans saw the largest increases in motor vehicle death rates.

Among those who previously had Covid, 30% of Southerners (and 27% of non-Southerners) are currently experiencing prolonged symptoms, known as Long Covid. A new study finds that most Long Covid patients experienced a mild initial Covid infection, yet still developed prolonged symptoms that affected their daily lives.

Life expectancy in the U.S. dropped in 2021 for a second year in a row, losing 25 years of progress and reaching its lowest level since 1996. Based on provisional 2021 data, the declines were greater for Black, Hispanic, and American Indian/Alaska Native (AIAN) populations.

As of January 7, 2023, elderly people ages 70 and up were 9 times more likely to be hospitalized than adults between the ages of 18-59. Though Covid hospitalizations are below the Omicron surge in early 2022, the CDC’s Community Transmission map shows high levels of community transmission across the nation.

Though Covid case counts are trending downwards — with the caveat that many people using at-home tests are not reporting their results — Covid deaths were still high at roughly 400 daily in August and September 2022.

The number of adults in the U.S. reporting symptoms of anxiety and depressive disorder has tripled from 11% in 2019 to 36% in September 2022.

As of February 2022, credit bureau data revealed that 17% of Southerners had medical debt, compared to 11% for non-Southerners. In some Southern counties, up to 44% of individuals had medical debt in collections.

There were 1,031 pregnancy-related deaths in the South during 2019-2021, a rate of 36 deaths per 100,000 live births. During the same period, the maternal mortality rate was 22 deaths per 100,000 live births in the rest of the nation.

Despite substantial federal subsidies, seven states in the deep South (AL, FL, GA, MS, NC, SC, and TN) have not adopted Medicaid expansion. As a result, 15% of working-age Southerners lack health insurance compared to 11% in the rest of the United States.

As early as 1988, the National Council on Public Works Improvements concluded that the nation’s infrastructure was barely adequate for needs of the day, and would not be sufficient for future population and job growth. More recent state-by-state report cards gave Mississippi a grade of “D.” Similarly, West Virginia’s report card (D) revealed that half of its treated water was lost through leaks in its struggling system. Louisiana received the lowest grade in the nation (D-).

Firearm suicides accounted for 26,322 deaths in 2021 compared to 20,966 firearm homicides and 1,544 other firearm deaths. The number of firearm suicides increased from 23,941 in 2019 to 24,292 in 2020, and then to 26,322 based on 2021 provisional data.

Among those who previously had Covid, 32% of Southerners (and 29% of non-Southerners) are currently experiencing prolonged symptoms, known as Long Covid. Nearly half (49%) of Covid survivors in West Virginia currently report Long Covid symptoms, which is the highest rate in the nation.

The majority of psychologists have seen their waiting lists grow since the pandemic hit. And many Americans are turning to crisis hotlines, which are also seeing ballooning demand.

Starting in 2010, the rates of the uninsured dramatically dropped with the implementation of the Affordable Care Act. And while uninsured rates improved across all racial/ethnic groups, disparities remained.

One in three adults who previously had Covid have experienced prolonged symptoms, known as Long Covid. More than 40% of Covid survivors in 5 Southern states have reported Long Covid symptoms: 41.5% in LA, 44.2% in AL, 45.6% in KY, 45.9% in TN, and 49.3% in WV. With Covid cases beginning to increase across the nation in the week ending July 9,6 the number of people experiencing Long Covid symptoms will also increase.

The U.S. Covid death toll officially reached 1 million in May 2022. A new study shows that about one-quarter of those lives — at least 225,000 — could have been saved if each state had vaccinated 90% of adults.