CMS Star Rating (Hospital Overall Rating)
A 1-to-5 star rating assigned by CMS to hospitals based on quality measures — covering mortality, safety, readmissions, patient experience, and timely care.
How It Works
CMS calculates the Overall Hospital Quality Star Rating using approximately 46 quality measures across five groups: mortality (22% weight), safety of care (22%), readmission (22%), patient experience (22%), and timely and effective care (12%). A 5-star hospital performs significantly above the national average across most categories. Only about 14% of hospitals earn 5 stars, while about 6% receive 1 star. Star ratings are updated annually and are prominently displayed on Medicare.gov's Care Compare tool. Critics argue the ratings favor smaller hospitals and may penalize large teaching hospitals that treat more complex patients.
Related Terms
- Readmission Rate — The percentage of patients who return to the hospital within 30 days of discharge for the same or related condition — a key quality metric tracked by CMS.
- Mortality Rate (Hospital) — The rate of patient deaths within 30 days of hospital admission for specific conditions — risk-adjusted to account for differences in patient severity.
- HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) — A standardized patient satisfaction survey that measures patients' perspectives on their hospital experience — covering communication, responsiveness, cleanliness, pain management, and discharge information.
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About This Definition
This definition is part of the HospitalCostData Hospital Pricing Glossary — 25 terms explaining hospital costs, quality ratings, and healthcare billing. Written for patients, journalists, researchers, and healthcare professionals.