ABSTRACT
In the right-to-work (rtw) set of states, the socioeconomic measures showed tight connections that indicated a rigid structure. GINI 1959 associated with more socioeconomic (SE) factors than GINI 2010 across these rtw states, a hint that the rigidity preserved system structure for decades. Relationships between SE factors in the non-right-to-work set were fewer and weaker, an indication of a loosely connected, flexible, and resilient system. Health markers much more tightly connected to each other and to SE factors in the rtw set of states than in the non-rtw states. Health in the rtw system was locked into its tight SE structure and became part of that tight structure, a rigid and brittle affair that reacts with every passing SE breeze. The continuing influence of GINI 1959 on both the current SE structure and current morbidity and mortality, especially in the rtw states, does raise eyebrows.
