AUGUSTA – Mainers spend more of their income on health care than residents of most other states, and the smoking rate in Maine is higher for both men and women than in the United States as a whole, a report released Thursday by the Baldacci administration says.

But the report by the Office of Health Policy and Finance also finds that prenatal care in Maine is better, the prevalence of high blood pressure is lower and Maine does a better job addressing infectious diseases.

In releasing the report, health policy office Director Trish Riley said it’s necessary to closely examine the state’s present health picture before taking steps to improve it.

Based on statistics from the U.S. Census, Maine Health Data Organization, Maine Hospital Association, federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, Maine Bureau of Health and medical journals, the report notes that Mainers are older than the nation’s population as a whole. Fewer Mainers attended college, the report said, and their household income tends to be less.

Among the key findings:

. Mainers spend more of their income on health care than residents of 45 other states.

. The prevalence of high blood pressure is lower in Maine than in the U.S. as a whole.

. The rate of smoking-related deaths is significantly higher in Maine than the rest of the country.

. Mainers have higher incidences of lung cancer, prostate cancer and colorectal cancer, but a lower incidence of breast cancer.

. Death from heart disease is significantly lower in Maine.

. Maine has lower rates of infant mortality and premature birth.

. The teen birth rate is significantly lower in Maine than it is nationwide.

The report also notes that Maine’s death rate from cancer is significantly higher than in the country as a whole. It says that’s due to the high level of mortality associated with lung cancer, which is seen more often in Maine than elsewhere.

Looking within the state, the report finds differences in poverty, education and employment between southern Maine and the rest of the state. Those differences, which influence health status, “will grow larger over time,” it says.

The report is required as part of the law that created the Dirigo Health program, which seeks to expand subsidized health coverage to Mainers who are lacking it or are underinsured. The program, a major first-term initiative of Gov. John Baldacci, was created in 2003 and is administered through Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield.

The State of Maine’s Health: A Regional Comparison can be found online at: www.dirigohealth.maine.gov/dhlp07.html