For the 12th consecutive time, Rush University Medical Center has received an A grade for patient safety, the highest possible, in a nationwide evaluation. The Leapfrog Group, a nonprofit organization that rates hospitals on their safety record and other quality measures, announced their safety grades for the medical center and nearly 3,000 other hospitals in the United States today.
Leapfrog rates acute care hospitals in the spring and fall each year, giving them grades from A to F. Only 32% of hospitals received an A grade this time. Rush University Medical Center is among only 140 hospitals in the country to have received A grades a dozen times in a row or more and one of only 10 in Illinois.
Rush Copley Medical Center and Rush Oak Park Hospital both received a B in the latest round of grades. The grades for every hospital rated can be found on Leapfrog’s Hospital Safety Grade website.
A decade of excellence in patient safety
“Seeing 12 consecutive top grades might suggest that safe care comes naturally — but it doesn’t,” said Dr. Brian Stein, vice president and chief quality officer for Rush University System for Health. “It takes dedicated clinicians and staff, working together every day, to prevent harm and provide the care our patients deserve.
“For years, our teams have delivered care that is both effective and safe. On behalf of Rush and the families who trust us, I’m sincerely thankful for their commitment.”
“Rush University Medical Center deserves recognition for its unwavering focus on protecting patients and delivering safe care,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “Sustaining this level of excellence over time shows a true, organization-wide commitment to making patient safety a top priority every single day.”
A report card based on public reports
The Leapfrog Group bases its grades on 30 measures of preventable errors, accidents, injuries and infections, and the systems hospitals have in place to prevent them. The grade represents each hospital's overall performance in keeping patients safe from harm while they are in the hospital.
The data for these measures comes from information hospitals publicly report to the federal government’s Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), an extensive hospital survey and other supplemental data sources. The grading system is peer-reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.
A full analysis of the data and methodology used is available on the Hospital Safety Grade website.
While Rush Copley Medical Center and Rush Oak Park Hospital did not receive A grades this spring, each has a long track record of excellence in safety and have previously earned A's in many consecutive Leapfrog grading cycles. “Earning a B Hospital Safety Grade is a testament to the commitment of everyone at Rush Copley Medical Center and Rush Oak Park Hospital working together to put patients first,” said Missy Danforth, senior vice president of health care ratings at The Leapfrog Group
One of a fantastic four
Rush University Medical Center’s dozenth A grade for safety is among a group of honors that places the medical center among the highest level of hospitals nationwide. They also include the medical center’s current five-star rating from CMS, the highest possible; inclusion in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 Best Hospitals Honor Roll; and consistently ranking among the top 10 academic medical centers nationwide in an annual study by Vizient, a health care performance improvement organization.
Rush University Medical Center is one of only four hospitals in the country to receive all of these honors every year for the past five years. “Taken together, these honors show that the care Rush provides for our patients is among the very best in the entire country,” Stein said.