THESE 10 STATES ARE THE WEALTHIEST IN THE U.S.A.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2023), The United States of America’s annual median household income was $77,719 (based on the Bureau's one-year estimates).

However wide variation exists among states. 

The average household income among the 10 lowest-performing states was $61,021, 36% lower than the average among the country’s 10 highest-performing states, at $95,860. 

Mississippi had the lowest annual median household income among states, at $54,203.

 

#10. Connecticut

Median Household Income: $91,665

According to the state, 15 Connecticut companies are on the 2024 Fortune 500 list, encompassing key industries such as insurance, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, biosciences, and medical technology.

Read more about Connecticut.

 

9. Colorado

Median Household Income: $92,911

Some of the largest employers in the state include companies in trade, transportation, and health care.

Read more about Colorado.

 

8. Utah

Median Household Income: $93,421

The largest employers in Utah include the Intermountain Health System, Walmart, and the state government, as well as major universities including Brigham Young University and the University of Utah, which includes a hospital.

Read more about Utah..

7. Washington

Median Household Income: $94,605

Government jobs are the second-largest employment sector in the state, with more than 605,000 workers as of November 2024, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates. The trade, transportation, and utilities sectors were the largest and employed more than 617,000 workers in November.

Learn more about Washington.

6. Hawaii

Median Household Income: $95,322

The public sector remains the largest employer in Hawaii, with more than 126,000 government workers as of November 2024, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. The state had no company that was included in the 2024 Fortune 500 list.

Read more about Hawaii.

5. California

Median Household Income: $95,521

Four counties in California – San Francisco, Marin, San Mateo, and Santa Clara – are among the wealthiest counties in the country, according to a recent U.S. News analysis. The median household income of the richest county, Santa Clara, is the second-highest in the U.S., at $159,674, according to 2019-2023 Census Bureau estimates.

Learn more about California.

4. New Hampshire

Median Household Income: $96,838

Health care is one of the largest industries in New Hampshire, employing more than 102,000 people as of November 2024, according to data published by the state.

Read more about New Hampshire.

3. Maryland

Median Household Income: $98,678

Three companies based in the state – Lockheed Martin, Marriott International, and Constellation Energy – are included on the 2024 Fortune 500 list.

Maryland’s Howard County, with a median household income of $146,982, was the sixth-wealthiest county in the nation, according to 2019-2023 Census Bureau estimates. The largest employer in the state is the government, which had a workforce of more than 538,000 people as of November 2024, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Read more about Maryland.

2. New Jersey

Median Household Income: $99,781

New Jersey’s richest county – Hunterdon County – has a median household income of $139,453, according to 2019-2023 Census Bureau estimates. The trade, transportation, and utilities supersector has the largest number of workers in the state, with nearly 920,000 employees as of November 2024, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Read more about New Jersey.

1. Massachusetts

Median Household Income: $99,858

Massachusetts is home to 16 companies that are included on the 2024 Fortune 500 list, yet it is the education and healthcare services sector that is the largest employer in the state, with nearly 850,000 workers as of November 2024, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Researchers in the U.S. say they're working on a vaccine to prevent meth addicts from getting high

Researchers in the U.S. say they're working on a vaccine to prevent meth addicts from getting high — and the early test results are promising.

Scientists at the Scripps Research Institute in California successfully tested the methamphetamine vaccine on rats. When given meth, the vaccinated critters showed few signs of intoxication.

"This is an early-stage study, but its results are comparable to those for other drug vaccines that have then gone to clinical trials," said senior study author Michael A. Taff, an addiction sciences expert at the Scripps Institute.

Drug vaccines are a burgeoning new field of research. Just like regular vaccines evoke antibody responses against viruses and bacteria, drug vaccines evoke antibody responses against drug molecules.

The idea is to keep those molecules from getting into the brain. That way, addicts don't get high when they use. If they don't get high, they have no incentive to keep using.

Nicotine and cocaine vaccines are already in clinical trials. Meth vaccines have been tested on animals before, but this is the first one to show encouraging results.

That's because a meth high is a more difficult high to block. The meth molecule is so structurally simple it can go unnoticed by the immune system. And once meth is in the system, it stays there for a long time.

"The simple structure and long half-life of this drug make it a particularly difficult vaccine target," Kim Janda, a chemist with the institute, said.

Janda's team developed six vaccines and tested them all until they found the most effective one — MH6. When given meth, the rats vaccinated with MH6 kept the drug mostly in the bloodstream and not the nervous system.

But more work needs to be done to perfect the vaccine, the researchers say.

"I think that this vaccine has all the right features to allow it to move forward in development," Janda said. "It certainly works better than the other active vaccines for meth that have been reported so far."

The researchers say the next step is to tweak the vaccine so it lasts longer. Vaccinating meth addicts every few weeks wouldn't work, they say. Many would fall off the wagon between treatments.

What's more, meth addicts tend to have little money and no health insurance. They're likely to get their treatment from government health services. Weekly or monthly doses would be too expensive a program to maintain.

"Extending the duration of protection is the next big scientific challenge in this field," Taffe said.

The results of the study were published in the journal Biological Psychiatry.