COVID-19: Key metrics ranked by state

Article

Unemployment, economies, and response aggressiveness compared.

With data obtained from the U.S. Department of Labor, WalletHub compiled several rankings of all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, in order to reveal the regional impact of COVID-19.

Some states excel at keeping unemployment low. Some soar in response aggressiveness or economic recovery.

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Louisiana ranked as one of the most vulnerable states, topping the lists of most exposed economies and biggest increase in unemployment.  New York has been most aggressive in limiting virus exposure, followed by the District of Columbia, Alaska and Hawaii.

On the other end, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Alabama and Wyoming have been least aggressive.

Unemployment metrics were based on increases in unemployment insurance initial claims for several key weeks. Response aggressiveness was determined through evaluation across three key dimensions, “Prevention & Containment,” “Risk Factors & Infrastructure” and “Economic Impact.” High impact industries, workforce and resources for businesses to cope better with the crisis were considered when ranking each state’s economic exposure to the pandemic.

Here are the 50 states listed alphabetically, with rankings for each metric. For links to the full articles and more information on how results were gathered, click here, here and here.

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