U.S. News & World Report last week announced it will adjust its methodology for its Best Hospitals and Best Children's Hospitals rankings, following backlash from some medical schools over how the publication creates its lists.

How US News will change its rankings

According to a post by Ben Harder, managing editor and chief of health analysis at U.S. News, the Best Hospitals and Best Children's Hospitals rankings will move away from an emphasis on expert opinion and shift towards more objective measures, effective this year.

Specifically, outcome measures derived via federal data will account for 45% of the methodology in 11 adult specialty rankings, an increase from 37.5% last year. In rehabilitation, outcome measures will account for 30% of the methodology, up from 20% last year. Meanwhile, structural indicators of quality, like the availability of key patient services, will account for 35% of the methodology in all 12 adult specialties.

In addition, the weight of expert opinion will drop from 25% to 12% in four specialty rankings:

• Cardiology & Heart Surgery
• Neurology & Neurosurgery
• Obstetrics & Gynecology
• Pulmonology & Lung Surgery

And the weight of expert opinion will drop from 27.5% to 15% in seven specialty rankings:

• Cancer
• Diabetes & Endocrinology
• Ear, Nose & Throat
• Gastroenterology & GI Surgery
• Geriatrics
• Orthopedics
• Urology

Meanwhile, in rehabilitation, expert opinion will drop from 50% of the methodology to 30%.

In pediatric specialty rankings, measures of best practices will increase from 9.17% to 12% and diversity, equity and inclusion will increase from 2% to 2.33%, while the weight of expert opinion will drop from 8% to 5% in pediatric cardiology and heart surgery, and from 13% to 10% in all other pediatric specialties.

"Our decision was informed by discussions with numerous stakeholders, including hospital leaders and medical experts in diverse specialties," Harder wrote. "While studies indicate that patients consider provider reputation when choosing where to receive care, medical professionals, whom we regularly consult with, generally agreed that subjective data should play a lesser role in determining the U.S. News hospital rankings."

In addition, U.S. News has been considering expanding upon its health equity measures. And while the publication has received "a large volume of feedback" from industry stakeholders on the topic, it will "devote additional time to refining how we assess hospital performance in health equity." Therefore, health equity measures will not be used in 2023's Best Hospitals rankings, but could be incorporated into the 2024 rankings. (Harder, U.S News & World Report, 2/8; Henderson, MedPage Today, 2/10)