CMS publishes hospital star ratings

Editor's Note

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on July 27 published its Overall Hospital Quality Star Ratings, the July 27 Modern Healthcare reports.

The ratings, which are a composite metric of one to five stars, grade the quality of nearly 4,000 hospitals and are posted to the CMS Hospital Compare website.

For its grading, CMS uses 64 measures, such as rates of hospital-acquired infections and readmissions after cardiac and total joint surgery. Hospitals have to meet minimum reporting requirements to be eligible to receive a star rating.

Publication of the ratings comes after substantive discussions with hospitals and stakeholders to review the rating’s methodology. 

The CMS published the much-anticipated Overall Hospital Quality Star Ratings on Wednesday after industry stakeholders and Congress pressured the agency to continue to delay their release. The ratings are a composite metric of one to five stars, with five being the best.