Oregon Ranks 18th Among Top U.S. States For Women

SALEM, OR — While Oregon appears to have plenty of progressive economic and social offerings for women in the state, the quality of healthcare and perceived level of safety could use some improvement, according to a study released by WalletHub this week.

Ranking the best and worst states for women, WalletHub looked at several female-focused categories to develop its metric, such as the quality of women’s hospitals, general job security for women, depression and suicide rates for women, and the general friendliness toward women's equality.

Ultimately, WalletHub ranked Oregon 18th in the nation, above California (19) but below Washington state (14). Perhaps interestingly, the top 20 states for women are mostly found in the north and along either coast.

The top five best states for women to live are Minnesota, Massachusetts, Vermont, North Dakota and Wisconsin. While, conversely, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Oklahoma and Alabama were ranked as the five worst states for women.

With the exception of Nevada, all other states in the bottom 10 were in the South.

In its study, 2018’s Best & Worst States for Women, WalletHub looked at data ranging from women’s earnings, the percentage of women-owned businesses and unemployment rates to preventative health care, female homicide rates, and the incidence of rape and stalking in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Oregon ranked 50th for lowest median earnings for female workers but somehow ranked 11th overall for women's economic and social well-being. Women's health and safety lowered the state's average, however, with WalletHub giving Oregon the 28th spot overall.

Louisiana, Tennessee, Nevada, and Alaska were all tied for highest homicide rate among women — just in case you were planning a vacation.

Some other findings:

• The District of Columbia, home to the U.S. Capitol, ranked 15th as the best place for women to live. When adjusted for inflation, women there had the highest median wage of $32,355, compared to $16,843 in Hawaii, which had the lowest rate.
• D.C. women were also much more politically involved than women in Hawaii, voting in the 2016 presidential election at a rate of 77.2 percent, 1.6 times higher than in Hawaii, where only 49.3 percent of women voted.
• New Hampshire had the lowest share of women living in poverty — only 9.4 percent, which was 2.6 times lower than in Mississippi, which finished 51st in that ranking. Nearly one-fourth of Mississippi women live in poverty.
• Alaska is a good place for women who want to own their own businesses. It had the highest share of women-owned businesses at 22.87 percent, which was 1.6 times higher than in South Dakota, where only 14.04 percent
• Most women in Massachusetts have health insurance with an uninsured rate of 2.4 percent, which is 7.7 times lower than Texas, which finished dead last with an uninsured rate of 18.5 percent for women.

The ranking used data from the federal Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Center for Educational Statistics, as well as the Council for Community and Economic Research, U.S. News and World Report, Institute for Health Metrics and its own research. Read more about the methodology.

Image via Travis Loose, Patch