South Dakota Health Insurance

How healthy is living
in South Dakota?

South Dakota tumbled from 19th in 2011 to 27th in 2012 according to America's Health Rankings® by the United Health Foundation.

The good news:

• Preventable hospitalizations have dropped by 16 percent in the past five years.
• Occupational fatalities have declined over the past five years. However, at 5.9 deaths per 100,000 workers, the state rates 38th nationally.

The bad news:

• Immunization rates for young children dropped by nearly six percentage points over the most recent five-year period.
• Binge drinking and smoking rates are high.

South Dakota's best and worst category rankings:

• Poor Mental Health Days – 3rd
• Poor Physical Health Days – 4th
• Air Pollution – 5th
• Immunization Coverage – 42nd
• Binge Drinking – 44th
• Geographic Disparity – 50th

more details

• See the United Health Foundation's latest findings on South Dakota.
• Trust for America's Health ia another source for key South Dakota health quality findings. In addition, 2010's federal health reform, the Affordable Care Act (ACA), included the creation of a prevention fund to provide more than $16 billion over the next 10 years to invest in effective, proven prevention efforts, like childhood obesity prevention and tobacco cessation, and the site has a report on how it impacts South Dakota here.

get local health results

State snapshot too large? Get county-by-county health rankings for South Dakota, from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Population Health Institute at the University of Wisconsin.

Does South Dakota have a health insurance high risk pool?

South Dakota Risk Pool
605-773-3148 (ask for a Risk Pool representative)

IMPORTANT UPDATE: Starting in 2010, South Dakota started offering health care insurance coverage to residents through the federally established temporary high-risk pool program. To find out more about South Dakota's participation, click here.

Risk pools are state-sponsored programs to help people with a history of medical problems in their family to purchase coverage. These pools are for people who can afford to buy health insurance, but are not able to get underwritten in the private market because of a pre-existing health condition. These programs can vary significantly from state to state in price, benefits and number of people served. Often insurance companies doing business in the state are required to contribute to the pool to keep it in the black. In the best cases, they allow people to be able to switch jobs or become self-employed without the fear of losing their health insurance coverage. Read more about risk pools here.

Non-profit sources of health insurance information for South Dakota

• The Foundation for Health Coverage Education's mission is to provide simplified public and private health insurance eligibility information in order to help more people access coverage. Here is its guide on how to find health insurance in South Dakota.
• The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is tracking the progress of health insurance reform in each state. Its page for South Dakota can be found here.
• The National Committee for Quality Assurance is a private, non-profit organization that, among other things, provides health care plan report cards for consumers. Search for South Dakota health insurance plan report cards.

South Dakota state government health insurance resources

Health reform in South Dakota —  Information on the state’s implementation of national health care reform.

South Dakota Insurance Division —  Part of the state’s Department of Labor and Regulation, this office provides health insurance advice to South Dakotans and information on companies operating within its borders.

South Dakota Department of Social Services —  Its Division of Economic Assistance is responsible for administering the Medicaid to help low income individuals and families.

South Dakota Children’s Health Insurance Program —  Provides health insurance at little or no cost to South Dakota children who meet certain eligibility guidelines.

South Dakota Department of Health —  Its mission is to prevent disease and promote health, ensure access to needed, high-quality health care, and to efficiently manage public health resources.

How did South Dakota officials vote on health reform?

H.R.2: Repealing the Health Care Bill

#14

Date of Vote: 1/19/2011 Status: House passed 245-189, 1 not voting

HOUSE|SENATE

1/19/2011--Passed House amended. Repealing the Job-Killing Health Care Law Act - Repeals the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, effective as of its enactment. Restores provisions of law amended by such Act. Repeals the health care provisions of the Health Care and Education and Reconciliation Act of 2010, effective as of the Act's enactment. Restores provisions of law amended by the Act's health care provisions. [more]

Yes (1)

• Kristi Noem