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The United States of Well-Being

By Jeff Arnold, CEO and Chairman

 

Yesterday, Sharecare’s population health division and Gallup released our annual Well-Being Index rankings for the United States, reporting on health metrics and trends across what we define as the five elements of well-being — purpose, social, financial, community and physical. For the individual state rankings, top honors go to Hawaii for the sixth year out of the nine the report has existed, with Alaska, South Dakota, Maine and Colorado rounding out the top five.

Looking at the 2016 rankings on a national scale, we saw some of the best results since the Well-Being Index began in 2008, thanks in large part to a decrease in smokers, higher rates of exercise and more Americans with health insurance than ever before. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index also revealed some areas requiring attention, with chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes and depression being at an all-time high.

For Sharecare, these rankings are about much more than simply reporting out some numbers. Rather, harnessing the power of data – on both a macro and micro level – is part of our DNA; and enables us to create a highly personalized experience for each person using our platform, and empower every partner to better understand how their population is progressing on the path to be happier, healthier and more productive.