Top health care and safety: New Jersey is a great place for women

🔴 New Jersey is a great state for women, according to WalletHub

🔴 It flourishes in the health care and safety category

🔴 Median earnings for women could fare better, though

With March being Women’s History Month and women holding only around a quarter of the seats in Congress despite making up 51% of the population, the personal finance website, WalletHub has released its report on 2023’s Best and Worst States for Women.

The study compared all 50 states and the District of Columbia across 23 key metrics with the data set ranging from earnings for female workers to women’s preventive health care and the female homicide rate.

So, not just economic and social well-being for women, but also their health care and safety, as well, said WalletHub analyst, Jill Gonzalez.

Where does New Jersey rank?

New Jersey is one of the top 10 states for women, according to the report, ranking at number 10.

“It did a little bit better in terms of health care and safety than the economic side of things,” Gonzalez said.

What categories did New Jersey fare well?

Overall, New Jersey did very well across the board when it comes to women’s health care and safety. It ranked as the 2nd best state in that category, only behind Massachusetts.

“We’re looking at a very low female uninsured rate, a high number of women with good or better health, and very good quality when it comes to women’s preventive health care,” Gonzalez said.

The state also has the 14th highest women’s life expectancy rate at birth.
New Jersey has the third-highest percentage of women who voted in the 2020 presidential election. That’s twice as many as states like West Virginia and Arkansas, which enhances the social well-being aspect of things, Gonzalez said.

The Garden State also does not have a lot of women living in poverty. It had the 7th lowest share of women in poverty

It also has one of the highest high graduation rates for women in the country, ranking 6th highest.

“So, when it comes to a good foundation for women, that definitely exists there, and that means it’s setting women up well to go on and earn a little bit more in the future,” Gonzalez said.

In what categories can New Jersey improve?

New Jersey could be doing better when it comes to women’s median earnings. Of course, the cost of living doesn’t help, Gonzalez said. But that is a number that could be doing better in the future. The state ranked 12th best in this category, but in terms of women’s economic and social well-being, New Jersey ranked 22nd best overall.

The unemployment rate for women in New Jersey also needs improvement, as it ranked 27th best on the list. She said the number of women without jobs here is higher than in most other states.

The best state for women is Vermont. New York is second best, followed by Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Connecticut. On the flip side, the worst states for women are all in the south. Oklahoma is the worst state for women followed by Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Alabama.

For a full report, please visit here.

Jen Ursillo is a reporter and anchor for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach her at jennifer.ursillo@townsquaremedia.com

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