Coronavirus Study: Maryland Ranks 24th Among States With Most Vulnerable Populations To COVID-19
(WJZ)- The coronavirus pandemic has impacted Americans nationwide as the number of cases has surpassed 1.3 million and the number of deaths is over 80,000. People of all backgrounds, ages, and health have been affected.
But, there are some members of our population who are particularly vulnerable to the virus. People over the age of 65, people with pre-existing conditions, people with insufficient housing and those who are struggling financially due to the pandemic.
According to a study conducted by Wallet Hub, Maryland ranks 24th among the 50 states and District of Columbia in the share of the states' population that falls into one of those four categories.
The study looked at 28 metrics to break down all 50 states and Washington D.C. into three different scores for "medical vulnerability", "housing vulnerability", and "financial vulnerability".
Maryland ranks 20th in the medical vulnerability category, 44th in housing vulnerability and 28th in financial vulnerability.
The state did have among the lowest share of homes lacking access to basic hygienic facilities (49th) according to the study, part of why it was found to be among states with the lowest housing vulnerability scores.
Neighboring West Virginia rated as the state that had the highest share of vulnerable people among its population. Pennsylvania ranked two spots behind Maryland in 26th, meaning its population has slightly fewer residents falling into the study's categories.
The full methodology and findings of the study are here.
