Overall hospital quality star rating
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What is the overall hospital quality star rating?
The overall hospital quality star rating summarizes a variety of measures- Opens in a new window on Hospital Compare reflecting common conditions that hospitals treat, like heart attacks or pneumonia. Hospitals may perform more complex services or procedures not reflected in the measures on Hospital Compare. The overall hospital quality star rating shows how well each hospital performed, on average, compared to other hospitals in the U.S.
The rating ranges from 1 to 5 stars. The more stars, the better a hospital performed on the available quality measures. The most common overall hospital quality star rating are 3 or 4 stars. Learn more about overall hospital quality star rating calculations - Opens in a new window.
How can I use the overall hospital quality star rating?
In an emergency, you should go to the nearest hospital. When you are able to plan ahead, the overall hospital quality star rating can provide a starting point for comparing a hospital to others locally and nationwide. Along with the overall hospital quality star rating, Hospital Compare includes information on many important aspects of quality, like rates of infection and complications and patients’ experiences, based on survey results.
Choosing a hospital is a complex and personal decision that reflects individual needs and preferences. You should consider a variety of factors when choosing a hospital, like physician guidance about your care plan and other sources of information about hospitals in your area.
Discuss the information you find on Hospital Compare with your physician or health care provider to decide which hospital best meets your health care needs.
Where does the overall hospital quality star rating come from?
Hospitals report data to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the federal agency that runs the Medicare program, through the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting (IQR) Program - Opens in a new window Exit Disclaimer - Opens in a new window and the Hospital Outpatient Quality Reporting (OQR) Program - Opens in a new windowExit Disclaimer - Opens in a new window. The overall hospital quality star rating includes a variety of these measures in the overall rating calculation. Learn more - Opens in a new window.
Do the overall hospital quality star ratings and the measures on Hospital Compare include all patients treated at the hospital or just Medicare patients?
Some of the measures used to calculate the overall hospital quality star rating are based only on data from Medicare patients and some are based on data from all patients. The claims-based measures, which include the mortality, readmission, complications, patient safety, and imaging efficiency measures, are calculated using Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) hospital claims data only. The process of care, healthcare-associated infection (HAI), and HCAHPS Survey measures include data from all payers.
Why is the overall hospital quality star rating not displayed for some hospitals?
This website displays an overall hospital quality star rating for about 80% of our nation's hospitals on Hospital Compare. In order for Hospital Compare to display an overall hospital quality star rating for a hospital, the hospital must have enough data on the individual quality measures used to calculate the overall rating. Some hospitals, due to the number and type of patients they treat, may not report data on all measures, and therefore, aren't eligible for an overall hospital quality star rating. For example, hospitals that are new or small may not have enough patients for the measures used to calculate an overall hospital quality star rating.