First-Time Users: What Can I Find? See 15 Sample Links on Cost, Quality, Ratings, Health & Choices
Primary Listings
Hospital Compare - hospitalcompare.hhs.gov (all states) - Heart care, pneumonia, surgical infections
Federal government compares hospital care ratings on measures for heart attack (AMI), heart failure, pneumonia and surgical infection prevention. Data include heart failure and heart attack mortality, also percent of heart attack patients given PCI (such as stent or balloon angioplasty) within 90 minutes of arrival. Shows patient satisfaction HCAHPS ratings. Readmission rates for Medicare (these illnesses only) were added in 2009. Editor's Pick because the government standardized its ratings for all hospitals, and most ratings are based on more than just Medicare patients. Hospital participation is voluntary. Small volume hospitals will not show data for some measures. Current with 2008 data. Puerto Rico included. Hospitals may refer to these measures as the CMS measures. Updated 2009
NCQA Health Insurance Plan Ratings and Report Card 2009
Compare quality ratings for HMOs and PPO health insurance plans. Aetna, Blue Cross, Cigna, United - they're all here. Star ratings and distinction ratings shown for accredited commercial, Medicare and Medicaid plans. NCQA (National Committee for Quality Assurance) is a private nonprofit organization that sets standards for quality of care and service that health plans provide to their members. NCQA Accreditation is a nationally recognized seal of approval. Updated 2009
Nursing Home Compare (all states) www.medicare.gov 2009
Free 5-star ratings from Nursing Home Compare for nursing homes that are Medicare or Medicaid certified and provide skilled nursing care. Quality ratings, nursing staffing and CNA hours per resident day, and results from survey inspection reports are updated for 2009. If you cannot find the nursing home you're interested in, the facility might not accept Medicare and Medicaid patients. Check your state reports for additional information. Consumers can also ask the nursing facility to share their reports on resident and family satisfaction. Good nursing homes welcome your inquiry
Hospital Ratings at HealthGrades (all states)
Hospital Ratings (5-star, 3-star, 1-star) for about 30 diseases & procedures: Stroke, back surgery, COPD, diabetes, gall bladder surgery (cholecystectomy), bowel obstruction, GI Bleed, hip fracture repair, total hip replacement, knee replacement, prostatectomy, respiratory failure, pneumonia, cardiac bypass, heart attack, heart failure, angioplasty/ stent, valve replacement, sepsis, pancreatitis, peripheral vascular bypass & more. Free information on survival rates or complication rates if you click on the GOLD CROSS at the left. Medicare-only data for most conditions, although some states provide maternity, appendectomy, and bariatric surgery (gastric bypass) data. More extensive list than the federal government's site. Free hospital ratings are easy to use and cover all states. BEWARE, the site will try to sell you other services that you may not need if use the free listings at consumerhealthratings.com. Publicly-traded company. Most 2009 ratings use data from 2005 to 2007; some data may be older. AOL users must switch to another browser. Updated October 2008
SafeMedication.com
Site by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Ability to search information on specific drugs, and check drug interactions
Swine Flu - Swine Influenza A H1N1 (CDC)
CDC's official web pages on Swine Flu (H1N1 virus) are kept up-to-the-minute. Read their current recommendations, their investigation reports, status in US, Mexico and other countries, and the most recent travel recommendations. Information about face masks and respirators is under the General Information section
California - 2008 HMO and Medical Group Ratings Report Card
Compare California HMO health insurance plans: Aetna Health, Anthem Blue Cross HMO, Blue Shield, CIGNA, Health Net, Kaiser Permanente Northern and Southern regions), PacifiCare and Western Health Advantage. Clear, simple star system used for overall rating. In addition, get more details about member satisfaction, complaint rates, asthma, cancer screening, child/adolescent health, diabetes, heart care, maternity care, mental health, back pain, immunization, and smoking cessation. Medical group ratings also provided by county for the larger groups of doctors. Prepared by the California state Office of the Patient Advocate (OPA), using 2007 data
Florida Health Insurance Plans - Quality Ratings & Satisfaction
Member Satisfaction and quality ratings for cancer screening, diabetes, heart care, maternity / prenatal, high blood pressure, heart care, asthma, immunization for HMOs, PPOs, Medicare HMOs and more. Aetna, America's Health Choice, Amerigroup, Av-Med, Blue Cross Blue Shield (Health Options), Capital, CarePlus, Cigna, Citrus, DoctorCare, Florida Health Care, Freedom Health, Great-West, Health First, Healthy Palm Beaches, HealthEase & Well Care, Humana, Leon Medical Centers, Medica, Neighborhood, Optimum, PartnerCare, Preferred, Public Health Trust of Dade Co. (JMH), Quality Health, Total Health Choice, United Healthcare, Universal, Vista. Uses 2005 to 2007 data. Search by county. No need to download a pdf to see the scores or the checkmark rankings
Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine - Online Physician Profiles
Massachusetts provides consolidated access to information about the education, training, board certification status, malpractice, discipline and criminal records (if any) of all licensed physicians. Both MD and DO (osteopathic doctors). Mass.gov site is easy to use
New York State Hospital Quality Ratings - nyhealth.gov
Select NY hospitals to compare in seven areas: Appropriate Heart Attack care; Heart Failure care; Pneumonia; Surgical infection prevention; Adult CABG or Pediatric cardiac surgery mortality (death) rates; and Angioplasty mortality rates. The search by procedure feature shows volume of common inpatient surgeries like inpatient gall bladder removal and kidney transplants. Most data from 2008; death rates from 2006. Side-by-side comparisons do not work for 2008-2009 volumes; view individual hospital reports to see data. State Department of Health site. Able to search by region such as Long Island
Pennsylvania Hospital Performance Report 2008 | PHC4 (Sept. 2009)
Compare PA hospitals on Mortality Rating (relative survival rate), Average Charge (price), Length of Stay, and Readmissions. Thirty one (31) conditions in the pdf prepared reports include heart failure, abnormal heartbeat, heart attack, angioplasty and stent, pneumonia, stomach and intestinal bleeding, stroke, (laparoscopic & open) gallbladder removal, hip fracture, COPD, blood clots, colorectal procedures, diabetes, kidney failure, urinary tract infections, abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, hysterectomy, septicemia, (radical and transurethral) prostatectomy, respiratory failure with & without mechanical ventilation, intestinal obstruction & carotid endarterectomy. Grouped by region. Use the Create your Own Report feature to access 20 additional conditions such as Brain surgery, medical back care, bronchitis & asthma, cirrhosis, liver disease, pancreatic cancer, stomach disorders, vascular procedures and more. Symbols for Mortality ratings can be confusing - a higher mortality rating means worse survival (we think). Contains helpful glossary for diagnoses & surgical procedures. Probably the most comprehensive report for hospital care in the country. Data from Oct. 1, 2007 to Sept. 30, 2008
Utah Maternity & Newborns: Compare 2007 Hospital Charges, Patient Safety, Volume
Hospital quality ratings for Utah maternity and newborn care cover vaginal delivery and Cesarean Section births. View the Hospital Patient Safety reports to find UT hospitals who performed significantly better than expected for obstetric injuries to the mother's body, and birth injuries to newborns (2005 to 2007). Average 2007 charges: Typical Vaginal childbirth cost about $4792 statewide; a c-section was about $8243; newborn care additional $1712 or more. (See specific hospital average prices.) Uses APR-DRGs. Report updated January 2009 by Utah Dept. of Health. Earns Editor's Pick designation for its user-friendliness, willingness to tackle quality and charges in the same report, separately identifying complicated cases, and permitting viewing as html web pages, instead of requiring downloads of big reports. We miss the previous feature of rank-ordering hospital performance so the consumer can readily see top performers and bottom tier performers, but in the case of Utah obstetrics, all hospitals appear to rate well.
Vermont - 2009 Hospital Report Cards (Act 53)
Vermont calls these ratings Act 53 report cards, in honor of legislation passed in 2003, requiring VT hospitals to publish annual community reports about hospital quality, safety, financial health, costs for services and more. This government site links to all of the data, including outpatient prices. Health conditions include heart care, pneumonia, surgical infection prevention, central line associated bloodstream infection rates, hysterectomy infections, knee replacement and hip replacement infection rates, volume and death rates for resection of esophagus or of pancreas (usually for cancer), pediatric heart surgery, abdominal aneurysm repair (AAA), & more. This site earns Editor's Pick for putting Composite Quality Ratings, Survival Rate information, links to patient satisfaction and current medical prices all on the same same web page for easy access. Well done. Nurse staffing also available.
Wisconsin PricePoint - Outpatient & Ambulatory Surgery Cost
Compare outpatient and ambulatory surgery charges for colonoscopy, cataracts, ear surgery, cardiac catheterization, shoulder or knee surgery, carpal tunnel release, tonsil, appendix, breast biopsy, endoscopy, gallbladder, sterilization and more. Prices for tonsillectomy, laparoscopic appendectomy and ear tubes for kids are filed under C for Child. Shows one hospital or surgical center at a time, plus typical price in county and average 2008 surgery prices in Wisconsin
Government Employee 2009 Health Insurance Cost and Ratings (FEHB)
A very interesting web site from US Office of Personnel Management (OPM) helps federal employees and others compare the benefits, member satisfaction, and employee costs of up to 4 health insurance plans at one time. Employees are eligible for some of the lowest health insurance rates we've ever seen. Search by zip code; choose local plans and/or national plans. Very convenient and current. Editor's Pick even though it does not show the amount that taxpayers and government institutions pay toward the total health care premiums