LIVONIA, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – Michigan’s health outcomes are worse than national averages, which might be the result of income disparities, according to a recent report by the Citizens Research Council of Michigan.
The report, released on Tuesday, sought to answer an important question: Why does Michigan have worse health outcomes compared to the rest of the country?
The rankings.
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Researchers evaluated a wide range of Michigan health metrics, using data compiled from government and private sources, as well as five factors which could contribute to health: financial resources, health care, food and nutrition, safety, and social support. Then, the report compared how Michigan ranked in these areas to national statistics.
The report found that Michigan is better than the national averages overall in four of the five factors, but ranks below national averages in access to financial resources.
Michigan ranks poorly in health compared to other states, especially in life expectancy, infant mortality and rates of diseases.
Michigan ranks 30th in terms of life expectancy among the states, with an overall life expectancy of 79 years, and has the 23rd-highest premature death rate in the country, measured as years of life lost before the age of 75. Additionally, a higher percentage of Michigan’s population has obesity, cancer, diabetes or cardiovascular diseases. In many of the areas, the report found Michigan is worse off than it was two decades ago.
Infant mortality rates.
The findings also showed wider disparities across races than the rest of the country. For example, Michigan has one of the worst Black infant mortality rates in the country at 13.4 deaths per 1,000 live births, compared to the national average of 10.7. In Michigan, the White infant mortality rate is 4.5 and the national average is 4.4.
As for the cause of these health outcomes, the report found Michigan ranked well compared to the nation in several social causes. Michigan was at or above national averages with regards to health care access, food and nutrition, safety and social support, and cost of living, although the report pointed out many areas in which Michigan could still improve. Michigan also had a smaller income difference between the richest and poorest people compared to the entire country.
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However, Michigan ranked poorly with regards to overall income, education, employment, and air quality. Michigan had a lower poverty rate, according to the report, compared to the nation (13.5% vs. 12.4%), and a higher unemployment rate for high school graduates (8.3% vs. 6.5%). Michigan also has a lower overall high-school graduation rate than the nation (81% vs. 87%).
Long-term growth.
The report made no specific policy recommendations, but concluded that the pathway to a healthier Michigan to is improve the economy and education systems.
“Improving the health of Michigan’s residents will set the state up for long-term growth and success,” the report said. “While this is not an easy task, the solutions fortunately overlap with other shared goals. The key to making the population healthier is a better education system and a more robust, fairer economy.”