Comment | DC is a city without world-class healthcare.

DC has a lot to be proud of. Unfortunately, when it comes to healthcare services, DC cannot claim any bragging rights. On July 27, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) updated Overall hospital quality star ratings. About 5 percent nationally Rated hospitals Received a star, the The lowest Rating. Remarkably, 50 percent of D.C.’s general hospitals — George Washington, Howard and United Medical Center — received this troubling rating, which measures “how well a hospital performs in various quality areas, such as treating heart failure and pneumonia, readmission rates and safety of care.”

No D.C. hospital is among more than 10 percent of U.S. hospitals to receive five stars from CMS.

To be sure, the CMS rating system is not without its critics. Of particular concern is that it is biased toward urban acute care hospitals that treat large numbers of poor, marginalized, and medically complex patients. However, the list of four- and five-star hospitals includes several city facilities, including Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins Hospital. Rated Ranked No. 5 inpatient medical facility in the nation by US News & World Report.

Additionally, the pipeline of DC suppliers appears to be similarly weak. Out of 192 US medical schools, none of the three schools in DC made it into the US News ranking of 50.

DC and its educational and civic institutions should try to address these issues head on instead of maintaining mediocrity. Accordingly, it is difficult to understand how the city can trust the Universal Health Service (UHS), which owns and operates the one-star GW Hospital. I was in trouble. and the one-star United Medical Center. This question becomes even more pressing after a recent Post article cited a claim by a disability rights watchdog group. Serious problems in care Psychiatric Institute in Washington, DC, which is owned and operated by UHS. In addition, more than 40 percent of the 16 acute care hospitals managed by UHS nationwide received one- or two-star Medicare star ratings. In addition, in 2020 UHS paid $122 million. To address claims of inadequate service delivery to federal and state governments.

DC and all its residents deserve better health care providers and partners.