Georgia ranks near the bottom of the nation for health care, according to a new WalletHub analysis that evaluated all 50 states and the District of Columbia on affordability, access, and health outcomes.
The Peach State placed 49th overall, ahead of only Mississippi, in WalletHub’s 2026 “Best & Worst States for Health Care” report. The study compared states using 44 metrics ranging from insurance coverage and provider availability to health outcomes and medical costs.
The findings suggest Georgia’s most persistent challenges continues to be the same: access to care.
Georgia ranked 49th in health care access, reflecting low rates of insured residents and relatively few health care providers compared to the state’s population. The state also ranked 43rd for health outcomes and 37th for health care costs, indicating that while costs were not among the nation’s worst, Georgians continue to face significant barriers in obtaining timely medical care.
Among the specific measures highlighted by WalletHub, Georgia ranked:
- 22nd for average monthly insurance premiums.
- 42nd for hospital beds per capita.
- 42nd for physicians per capita.
- 46th for dentists per capita.
- 49th for the percentage of insured adults.
- 42nd for the percentage of insured children.
WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo said the strongest health care systems balance quality, affordability, and accessibility.
“The best states for health care are those that make high-quality care affordable, on top of providing many options for doctors and making insurance easily accessible,” Lupo said.
Overall Rank State Total Score Cost Rank Access Rank Outcomes Rank 1 New Hampshire 68.63 2 17 1 2 Minnesota 66.72 3 2 11 3 Iowa 65.39 1 29 12 4 Rhode Island 63.44 13 10 9 5 Hawaii 63.08 25 23 3 6 Massachusetts 62.67 40 4 2 7 Maine 61.55 23 3 19 8 Wisconsin 61.37 24 6 13 9 Colorado 61.32 36 5 7 10 Nebraska 60.91 21 8 16 11 Kansas 60.63 11 11 24 12 South Dakota 60.56 4 7 30 13 Pennsylvania 60.55 12 18 18 14 North Dakota 60.53 30 1 25 15 Connecticut 59.75 45 14 6 16 Vermont 59.68 47 16 4 17 Maryland 58.99 20 28 17 18 Montana 58.76 29 15 20 19 Utah 58.17 22 51 8 20 Idaho 58.15 38 33 5 21 Michigan 57.87 7 36 27 22 Virginia 57.36 9 47 22 23 Missouri 56.35 19 12 36 24 California 56.32 39 25 14 25 Ohio 56.32 6 34 32 26 Indiana 56.30 8 31 33 27 Illinois 56.17 26 24 28 28 South Carolina 55.59 5 37 37 29 Washington 55.57 44 43 10 30 New Jersey 55.51 42 21 21 31 Delaware 53.74 28 35 31 32 Arizona 53.38 34 38 29 33 Oregon 53.29 49 27 15 34 Kentucky 52.61 10 9 50 35 Nevada 52.07 17 46 42 36 Florida 51.80 27 41 38 37 Wyoming 51.56 48 42 23 38 North Carolina 51.06 33 45 35 39 New York 50.98 50 22 26 40 District of Columbia 50.93 43 32 34 41 Oklahoma 50.78 16 39 44 42 Tennessee 50.57 18 30 46 43 Arkansas 50.56 15 26 49 44 New Mexico 50.49 31 44 40 45 Louisiana 49.57 35 13 48 46 Alabama 49.36 14 48 45 47 West Virginia 47.98 41 19 47 48 Texas 47.48 46 50 39 49 Georgia 47.33 37 49 43 50 Mississippi 44.76 32 40 51 51 Alaska 44.33 51 20 41 Note: With the exception of “Total Score,” all of the columns in the table above depict the relative rank of that state, where a rank of 1 represents the best conditions for that metric category.
Access Continues to Be Georgia’s Biggest Weakness
Georgia’s poor showing comes as policymakers continue to debate ways to address physician shortages, rural hospital closures, insurance coverage, and the availability of medical providers across the state.
While the study found that Georgia’s health care costs were comparatively middle-of-the-pack, WalletHub concluded that affordability alone is not enough when residents struggle to obtain insurance or find nearby physicians, dentists, and hospital services.
WalletHub based its rankings on 44 indicators across three broad categories to determine which states offer residents the best overall health care systems: cost, access, and outcomes.
The analysis incorporated data from numerous federal agencies and health organizations, including the U.S. Census Bureau, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Kaiser Family Foundation.
