States vary widely in their readiness to prevent infectious disease outbreaks, but on a scale of one to 10, no state scores higher than an eight, a new report has found.
According to The Washington Post, the analysis assessed states along ten indicators of preparedness. Half the states scored six, seven, or eight, while Arkansas had the lowest ranking of two.
The states with the highest score of eight included Maryland, Massachusetts, Tennessee, Vermont, and Virginia.
The indicators evaluated included public health funding, information management, childhood and flu vaccination rates, preparedness for the public health impacts of climate change, and food safety, the Post reported.
"It's not a comprehensive review, but collectively, it provides a snapshot of efforts to prevent and control infectious diseases in states and within the healthcare system," the report's authors wrote, according to the Post, adding that the indicators taken together "offer a composite snapshot of strengths and vulnerabilities across the health system."
States scored highest on the indicator of the capabilities of public health laboratories during emergencies or drills. States performed worst for the indicator that measured efforts to minimize healthcare-associated infections in which patients contract an infection while receiving medical treatment, the Post reported.
The findings also showed that 35 states met child vaccination goals for the child Hepatitis B vaccine and 14 states met flu vaccination goals, with South Dakota performing best in meeting the flu vaccination benchmark and Wyoming performing worst.
"Experts note that vaccination rates need to generally be above 70 percent for 'herd immunity' effects — which limit the spread and protect those without immunity — to become apparent," the report's authors wrote, according to the Post.
Meanwhile, 38 states met the stated food safety goal of testing 90 percent of reported cases of E. coli within four days, including 16 states which met that goal 100 percent of the time, the Post reported.
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