Health advocacy groups monitor the best and worst states in terms of health insurance. The factors used in rating the states fall into categories of access, quality of health care, costs and people's overall general health. Some of the findings are not particularly surprising. The areas of dense population of people with higher incomes fare better than poorer rural areas. With the exception of Hawaii, the best states for health care coverage are in the Northeast. The worst states are in the West and the South. A closer look at the worst states demonstrates the issues and problems that surround health care.

One of the worst states in the nation for health care is Nevada where 20% of the population gambles with their wellness as they have no health insurance. For those who do have health insurance, the choice of a primary care physician is sparse. There are only 86 doctors per 100,000 people in the state of Nevada and the hospital emergency rooms are understaffed and overflowing. The average wait time in a Nevada emergency room is 5 hours and 15 minutes.

Arizona scored dismally in the bottom 10 in all ranking categories. Arizona residents wait the same amount of time in an emergency setting as Nevadans and 18 percent of the population doesn't have health insurance. About 25% of Arizona citizens have never had their cholesterol checked and there are only 92 doctors for every 100,000 residents.

The neighboring state of New Mexico also scores poorly. New Mexico comes in with the second largest uninsured population with 22% of state residents uninsured. Add the 27% who have never had a cholesterol test and their state ranking plummets. The wait time in New Mexico emergency rooms is 4 hours and 30 minutes.

Moving on to Texas, statistics show it is the worst state in the nation for health insurance. There is no compulsory employer-offered health insurance leading to a high 25.7% rate of uninsured residents. Less than half of all Texas employers offer health insurance to their employees. Texas comes in with 96 doctors per 100,000 people.

Arkansas rounds out the five worst states for health care. The rate of uninsured is just over 20% with only 45% of businesses offering health insurance to employees. Arkansas also falls below the hundred doctors per 100,000 resident benchmark, although the emergency rooms seem a little more equipped with an average wait time of 3 hours and 30 minutes.

The truth is where you live matters in terms of the American health care system. The problem may be alleviated if all employers offered health insurance to employees with good preventative care which would in turn be advantageous to overcrowded emergency rooms.