For retirees planning to move after they stop working, it's amistake to choose a retirement destination based on where theirchildren live or the average annual number of sunny days, saidTeresa Ghilarducci in WalletHub's latest ranking of the best and worst states for retirees.

“Children move and good weather alone does not make people feelhappy or contented,” says Ghilarducci, an economics professorat the New School for Social Research who comments on labor andretirement issues.

Affordability, quality of life and health care

WalletHub rated states based on 24 metrics in three key areas:affordability, quality of life and health care. Data was pulledfrom various sources, including the U.S. Census Bureau, the FBI,the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Centers for Disease Control andPrevention, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, andWalletHub's own research.

Affordability was the primary determinant in judging a state'sfriendliness to retirees, particularly cost of living. Taxes onpension and Social Security income, and WalletHub's own Taxpayerranking, as well as the annual cost of in-home services, were alsoconsidered.

Drawbacks to large retiree population

While the attractiveness to retirees of any given state is basedon many different factors, not all of them economic, StevenApplewhite, professor emeritus in the Graduate College of SocialWork at University of Houston, noted that there are drawbacks to alarge retiree population.

Unless they are wealthy or self-sustaining, retirees may not bea “resource nor necessarily a population to seek by a state,” hesaid. “Currently and for the next 18 years, older Americans willretire at a rate of 10,000 workers a day. Like a double-edgedsword, many retirees who are financially secure and healthy todaymay enter old-old age as frail elders with chronic health problemsand financial challenges, only to be assumed by state governmentservices.”

However, Ghilarducci, director of the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis atthe New School, noted that a large population of retirees givesstates an opportunity to innovate.

Related: 15 best states for retirement in2016

In addition to bringing experience and spending power, she said,an older population's “demand for services can lead to innovationin geriatric services, nursing home quality, and growth in healthrelated professions.”

Here are the 15 worst states for retirees, as ranked byWalletHub:

15. Nebraska

• Total score: 53.95.
• Affordability rank: 40.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 50.
• Quality of life rank: 33.
• Health care rank: 6.

14. New Hampshire

• Total score: 52.6.
• Affordability rank: 39.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 17.
• Quality of life rank: 36.
• Health care rank: 18.

13. Massachusetts

• Total score: 52.59.
• Affordability rank: 46.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 31.
• Quality of life rank: 8.
• Health care rank: 7.

12. Arkansas

• Total score: 52.15.
• Affordability rank: 16.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 40.
• Quality of life rank: 48.
• Health care rank: 46.

11. Kentucky

• Total score: 51.73.
• Affordability rank: 17.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 37.
• Quality of life rank: 40.
• Health care rank: 49.

10. Maryland

• Total score: 51.25.
• Affordability rank: 38.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 35.
• Quality of life rank: 38.
• Health care rank: 30.

9. Alaska

• Total score: 50.99.
• Affordability rank: 33.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 1.
• Quality of life rank: 50.
• Health care rank: 17.

8. New York

• Total score: 50.46.
• Affordability rank: 48.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 46.
• Quality of life rank: 2.
• Health care rank: 27.

7. West Virginia

• Total score: 49.79.
• Affordability rank: 20.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 22.
• Quality of life rank: 46.
• Health care rank: 48.

6. New Jersey

• Total score: 49.54.
• Affordability rank: 42.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 42.
• Quality of life rank: 24.
• Health care rank: 35.

5. Vermont

• Total score: 47.58.
• Affordability rank: 47.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 27.
• Quality of life rank: 30.
• Health care rank: 12.

4. Connecticut

• Total score: 46.65.
• Affordability rank: 50.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 48.
• Quality of life rank: 15.
• Health care rank: 14.

3. Hawaii

• Total score: 46.17.
• Affordability rank: 49.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 21.
• Quality of life rank: 42.
• Health care rank: 4.

2. Washington, D.C.

• Total score: 43.97.
• Affordability rank: 45.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 18.
• Quality of life rank: 51.
• Health care rank: 5.

1. Rhode Island

• Total score: 36.95.
• Affordability rank: 51.
• WalletHub taxpayer rank: 47.
• Quality of life rank: 45.
• Health care rank: 36.

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