Retirees traditionally flock to the South to spend their golden years in sunshine and warmth. But if you have a health condition, you may want to think twice before making such a move.
The five states with the worst retiree health care are all located in the South, according to WalletHub’s latest annual ranking of the best states to retire.
The analysis found that the five worst states for retiree health care in 2022 are:
- Alabama (ranked No. 50 for health care)
- Mississippi (No. 49)
- Tennessee (No. 48)
- Kentucky (No. 47)
- Louisiana (No. 46)
In ranking the 50 states based on the health care available to retirees, WalletHub looked at more than a dozen metrics, including:
- Percentage of residents 12 and older vaccinated for COVID-19 (double weight)
- Number of family physicians per capita (double weight)
- Number of dentists per capita
- Top-rated geriatrics hospitals
- Quality of public hospitals
If good health care is paramount for you — and you can stand the cold — staying in colder climates for retirement might be a better idea. The top five states for retiree health care are:
- Minnesota
- Vermont
- Massachusetts
- Colorado
- Connecticut
How to cut your health care costs
Health care is expensive. That’s true no matter where you live — or what age you are. With a little planning, though, you can hang on to more of your hard-earned cash.
For example, a little old-fashioned “give and take” — like offering to pay in cash — might save you a bundle. As we report in “7 Ways Anyone Can Cut Their Health Care Costs“:
“Tell the medical office that you’re paying cash for a service and ask for a discount. Besides a lower bill, you might be able to negotiate a no-interest payment plan to spread your payments over a few months.”
Prescription drugs are a costly fact of life for millions of retirees. But Money Talks News managing editor Karla Bowsher has learned a few things about trimming such expenses.
Tap into her hard-earned wisdom by checking out “5 Ways I Slashed My Drug Costs up to 50%.”
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