Study: Nevada 7th among risky states for traveling

Nevada ranks as the seventh-riskiest state to travel to based on COVID-19-related health risk factors in combination with dangerous driving scores as we enter the holiday travel season, according to QuoteWizard.

Wyoming was found to be the riskiest state to travel to, with Idaho, Tennessee, North Dakota and Indiana rounding out the top five.

While the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is advising against holiday travel, approximately 9 million people traveled over the Thanksgiving holiday, so December is likely to see high travel numbers.

Nevada is the least-vaccinated state for adults, followed by Wyoming and Georgia, causing concern for flu season, while for the week ending Dec. 15 the state had the seventh-most COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people.

QuoteWizard looked at dangerous driving comparisons to evaluate road travel risk, then compared those figures with COVID-19-related risk factors. Overall, eight risk factors went into compiling a ranking of the riskiest states for travel.

The annual best and worst driver study, which includes such factors as rate of accidents, speeding tickets and DUIs, rated Wyoming, Virginia and Colorado drivers as the most dangerous.

The study included seniors with underlying health conditions, who are at high risk of serious complications from COVID-19, factoring in diabetes, cardiovascular disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma. The findings found West Virginia, Kentucky and Alabama to be the states with the highest rates of seniors with high-risk COVID-19-related conditions.

By analyzing U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Kaiser Family Foundation data, QuoteWizard looked at ICU beds and physicians per 1,000 people in each state. Wyoming, Montana and Hawaii were found to have the lowest hospital capacities.

Finally, the study included data on COVID-19 cases and deaths by state over the seven-day period ending Dec. 14. North Dakota, Rhode Island and South Dakota were found to have the highest rates of cases and deaths per 100,000 people.

At the other end of the spectrum, Massachusetts was found to be the least-risky state to travel to, followed by Missouri, Maine, Hawaii and Maryland.