There are 102.5 dental assistants for every 100,000 residents in Connecticut, the best-ranked state for dental health.
Oral health information site Dentaly ranked all 50 states and Washington, D.C., on dental health by using 12 different metrics in June.
Data on the number of general dental assistants in each state are from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which updated employment data to reflect 2023 in April.
Here is the number of dental assistants per capita in the 10 best and worst states for dental health.
Best states for dental health
1. Connecticut: 102.05 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
2. District of Columbia: 85.88 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
3. Massachusetts: 131.05 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
4. Washington: 156.48 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
5. Illinois: 114.81 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
6. New York: 91.63 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
7. New Jersey: 109.11 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
8. Maryland: 91.99 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
9. Hawaii: 94.35 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
10. Minnesota: 104.14 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
Worst states for dental health
1. Arkansas: 96.15 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
2. Louisiana: 103.96 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
3. West Virginia: 80.97 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
4. Mississippi: 86.04 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
5. Alabama: 90.02 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
6. Kentucky: 94.7 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
7. Oklahoma: 108.36 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
8. Texas: 111.34 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
9. Montana: 129.51 dental assistants per 100,000 residents
10. Tennessee: 88.7 dental assistants per 100,000 residents