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Florida has 15 hospitals included on Healthgrades’ Top 50 Best Hospitals for Surgical Care list, the most of any U.S. state. Healthgrades published its 2026 Specialty Excellence Awards Oct. 28. Healthgrades evaluated about 4,500 hospitals across 31 procedures and conditions for the awards. The Surgical Care Excellence Award specifically evaluates…

Hospital leaders are bracing for another wave of consolidation that could eclipse the sweeping changes spurred by the Affordable Care Act more than a decade ago. This time, the forces at play are more intertwined: lingering post-pandemic financial strain, rising labor and supply costs, and the accelerating need for investment…

Since spring 2025, the U.S. government has rolled out the broadest tariff measures in decades: reciprocal tariffs, expanded duties on steel and aluminum, and ongoing Section 301 tariffs on goods from China. The implementation of tariffs has raised the landed cost of imported assets, materials, and replacement parts across many industries, including healthcare. Healthcare facilities…

Health systems are increasingly offering concierge medicine, a market predicted to be worth over $13 billion by 2030.  Globally, the industry is expected to grow from $20.5 billion in 2025 revenue to $44.3 billion in 2034, according to Towards Healthcare, a health strategy firm based in Canada.  What exactly is…

Nearly 60% of Americans are extremely concerned or very concerned about rising healthcare costs, according to a recent survey from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. The results are based on a survey, released Oct. 21, of 1,289 U.S. adults conducted from Oct. 9-13. Four things to know:…

Hospitals are racing to integrate AI into daily care, but some nursing leaders worry the pace is outstripping the profession’s ability to understand the technology. At Akron, Ohio-based Summa Health, Chief Nursing Informatics Officer Marc Benoy, BSN, RN, sees that tension play out every day. “If nurses adopt AI without…

Becker’s has compiled a list of the hospitals with a CMS five-star rating for quietness. CMS’ Patient Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems database is a national, standardized survey of hospital patients about their experience during a recent inpatient stay. The survey was completed between October 2023 and…

Hospital labor costs held steady in August, signaling potential stabilization after several years of volatility. Yet new Kaufman Hall data shows that annual growth remains firmly in place, underscoring the lasting effects of a tight healthcare labor market and persistent wage inflation. Nationally, labor expenses per calendar day were unchanged…

Community hospitals are at a crossroads. Shrinking margins, policy shifts like recent legislation, and mounting Medicaid constraints are stretching organizations thin. Yet one thing hasn’t changed: the communities these hospitals serve still need access to high-quality, local care. Read more about the ways your organization could leverage tools, resources, and…

Hawaii is the most prepared state to address the healthcare needs of the U.S.’s aging population, while Oregon is the least, according to an analysis by Seniorly.  Seniorly examined each state across three dimensions — population trends, financial readiness and healthcare capacity — to devise the ranking. Here are the…

In Louisiana, the risk of dying from pregnancy-related causes is more than four times higher than in California, according to a new report from the Commonwealth Fund. In 2023, Louisiana had one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the U.S., at 41.9 deaths per 100,000 live births. In California,…

U.S. health systems are making primary care a strategic priority, with most planning to expand their footprint and adopt AI tools to improve operations, according to new research from Bain & Company. The survey, conducted in June, includes responses from 60 health system executives—most from academic medical centers and hospitals…

As hospitals across the U.S. continue to grapple with financial challenges, cuts and even closures, the toll on rural communities has also increased. In 2025 alone, Becker’s has reported on 21 hospital closures. The effects of these closures can move beyond healthcare, hurting local economies and eroding the sense of…

The Georgia Department of Community Health has approved Wellstar Health System’s application to build a $1.1 billion hospital, the Marietta, Ga.-based health system confirmed to Becker’s Oct. 21. The 230-bed Wellstar Kennestone Regional Medical Center at Acworth (Ga.) is expected to open in 2031. Wellstar filed a certificate-of-need application in…

Warwick, R.I., is the safest city in the U.S., according to a new analysis published by WalletHub. The personal finance company released its 2025 “Safest Cities in America” ranking on Oct. 20. The ranking compares 182 cities across three dimensions: home and community safety; natural-disaster risk; and financial safety. WalletHub…

Two in 5 U.S. employees work in a “quality” job — one that allows employees to meet basic financial needs, feel safe and respected, expand their skills, have a voice in decisions affecting them and maintain some control over their work, according to the American Job Quality Study. The study,…

The FDA has approved bioLytical Laboratories’ Insti HIV self test. The company touts it as the fastest home-use HIV test available in the U.S., with results in 60 seconds or less. BioLytical said the test provides a private, portable and highly accurate option for individuals to determine their HIV status…

Boston-based New England Baptist Hospital has the lowest unplanned readmission rate in the nation, according to CMS. CMS’ Unplanned Hospital Visits data is based on provider data for hospital return days, including unplanned readmission and unplanned hospital visit measures after outpatient procedures from July 2023 to June 2024. CMS updated…

Cyberattacks on hospitals are becoming more frequent, more sophisticated and more disruptive. They can paralyze EHRs, delay surgeries and force ambulances to divert. Yet many of the most persistent vulnerabilities aren’t buried deep in code — they sit at the messy intersection of technology and clinical practice. Chief medical information…

Although the CDC projects a moderate influenza season this winter, U.S. hospitals face a plethora of changes, including federal vaccine policy shifts, hospital-at-home disruptions and a growing measles outbreak.  The 2024-25 flu season was among the most severe since 2010, with approximately 47 million illnesses, 21 million healthcare visits, 610,000…

Revenue cycle management tops the list of healthcare providers’ top IT investment strategies, Bain & Co. and KLAS Research reported. Here are the percentages of 228 healthcare providers who listed each of these areas as a top-three investment priority, according to an Oct. 9 article from the management consultant and…

Starting in 2026, The Joint Commission will formally recognize nurse staffing as a national performance goal, meaning hospitals seeking accreditation must meet certain standards related to staffing and oversight.  Under the new element of performance, known as Goal 12, healthcare organizations must have a nurse executive responsible for overseeing staffing…

While the total of breached patient records so far in 2025 pales in comparison to the previous two years, the “number is still far too high and should not be tolerated as the norm,” American Hospital Association leaders wrote. Here are five healthcare cybersecurity-related figures from the Oct. 7 article…