The Appalachian Regional Commission determines economic distress by analyzing unemployment rate, per capita market income, and poverty rate averaged over three years and compared to national averages.

Vermont also scored well in the evaluation, ranking ninth in healthiest economies. Also in the top 10 were North Dakota (2), Hawaii (3), Nebraska (4), Minnesota (5), Massachusetts (6), Maryland (7), Connecticut (8), and Wyoming (10). Vermont improved its ranking to 9th from 12th.

Meanwhile, Mississippi was the most economically distressed state, according to the study.

Information provided by Phys.org - https://phys.org/news/2019-02-state-economy-decade.html