FEBRUARY 3, 2026 – Sarasota Memorial Hospital was recognized among the nation’s “50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals®” in an independent quality analysis provided by Premier Inc. and published in Modern Healthcare today.
The prestigious list, shared during American Heart Month, is based on an analysis of publicly available data from nearly 1,000 acute-care hospitals and cardiac-related care they provided to Medicare patients from 2021 through 2024. The study spotlights 50 “outstanding” U.S. hospitals that delivered better results across all 21 measures, including medical management and surgical outcomes, extended outcomes, and patient experience.
According to the 2026 report, SMH and other top-performing hospitals have:
- Better survival rates: Top facilities had significantly higher inpatient survival rates (24-56%) across all patient groups – heart attacks, heart failure, cardiac bypass and coronary angioplasty.
- Fewer complications: Patients undergoing cardiac bypass and angioplasty at top hospitals had shorter hospital stays and lower complications.
- Fewer readmissions: Patients treated at top hospitals had lower 30-day readmission rates. as well as higher 30-day survival rates.
- Better patient experience: Patients had a better experience (HCAHPS survey),
- Lower costs: Top hospitals showed lower average costs per patient case in all patient groups. The most notable difference was in the heart failure patient group, with a 19.6 percent difference ($9,859 vs. $12,264, respectively).
These outcomes add up to meaningful differences. “If all U.S. hospitals’ cardiovascular service lines performed at the level of these study winners, more than 14,300 additional lives and over $2.0 billion could be saved, and over 27,300 additional bypass and angioplasty patients could be complication-free,” the 2026 report states…