Dreamstime
By Russ Wiles | Arizona Republic
Arizona finished 39th overall, slipping five spots, in a study analyzing the 50 states for health care, education, the economy and other key categories conducted by U.S. News & World Report.
Washington was the highest-ranked state and Louisiana was last.
Arizona was hurt by bottom-third rankings in five of the eight categories examined. These include subpar rankings for crime/corrections (38th best), opportunity (40), fiscal stability (40), natural environment (41) and education (46).
Arizona’s best category grade was for the economy, where it ranked seventh-highest overall. Arizona also received above-average rankings in health care (21) and infrastructure (23), which includes energy, broadband and transportation networks.