Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center receives top scores in latest CMS hospital ratings

CMS’s hospital ratings are based on five categories: mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience and timely and effective care. A higher star rating, out of five, indicates better performance on these quality measures. 

 "These ratings highlight the excellent care Cleveland VA Medical Center provides,” said Jill Dietrich Mellon, executive director, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System. “Our job is to continue raising the bar for customer service and convenience throughout our northeast Ohio healthcare system, so Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center, in concert with our outpatient clinics and community care providers can all deliver excellent care for the Veterans, families, caregivers and survivors we are charged with serving.” 

In CMS’s 2025 ratings, 77% of VA hospitals that received an Overall Hospital Quality Star Rating received four or five stars, and no VA hospitals received a one-star rating. More than 90% of VA hospitals with ratings maintained or improved their 2024-star rating. 
View the star ratings and methodology for the ratings.

VA Northeast Ohio improvements to Veteran Care in 2025

• The Cleveland VA Medical Center expanded and modernized its Emergency Department, adding capacity and security to speed up triage and assessments and reduce ER wait times.
• The Cleveland VA Medical Center remodeled, expanded and modernized its Primary Care Clinic to support the VA’s Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) model, which provides team-based, coordinated, patient-centered care.
• Construction is nearly complete for the new Kent VA Clinic that will soon be offering diagnostic imaging, cardiology, cancer care and infusion appointments.
• VANEOHS added 48 mental health professionals, including 24 in Primary Care – Mental Health Integration (PCMHI) clinics and Northeast Ohio outpatient clinics and another 24 in the Behavioral Health Interdisciplinary Program (BHIP) teams across Northeast Ohio for enhanced personalized, team-based mental health care for Veterans.
• VANEOHS has again earned a 5-star rating for the Cleveland VA Community Living Center, making eight consecutive quarters of earning this rating. This rating is adapted by VA from CMS’s five-Star Rating Methodology for Nursing Homes.  Though not included on the CMS Care Compare website, VA CLC Compare results are available to the public on the VA’s Access to Care website.
• VANEOHS has opened a new VA Advanced Manufacturing & Technology Application Center in Cleveland. The center will support VAs across the country with assistive technology, medical modeling, eyeglass manufacturing, 3D visualization, and other clinical applications.

Overall VA improvements since January 

• The backlog of Veterans waiting for VA benefits has decreased more than 37% since Jan. 20, 2025.
• VA has opened sixteen new health care clinics, expanding access for Veterans around the country.
• VA is spending an additional $800 million on infrastructure improvements to ensure department facilities provide safe and effective patient care.
• Since Jan. 20, VA has offered nearly 1 million health care appointments outside of normal operating hours. These early-morning, evening, and weekend appointments are giving Veterans more timely and convenient options for care.
• VA is processing record numbers of disability claims, reaching an all-time fiscal-year high of 2.52 million ratings claims for FY25 as of Aug. 8.
• VA has made it easier and faster for VA-enrolled Veterans to access care from non-VA providers at the department’s expense.
• VA has implemented major reforms to make it easier for survivors to get benefits.
• VA is accelerating the deployment of its integrated electronic health record system.
• VA partnered with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to identify and recover $106 million in duplicate billing.
• VA has brought tens of thousands of VA employees back to the office, where staff can work better as a team to serve Veterans.
• In fiscal year 2025 through June, VA has housed 37,534 homeless Veterans. 

For more information, contact Sarah Amato, acting public affairs officer, at sarah.amato@va.gov or .

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ABOUT VA NORTHEAST OHIO HEALTHCARE SYSTEM: Focusing on treating the whole Veteran through health promotion and disease prevention, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System provides comprehensive, seamless health care and social services for more than 140,000 Veterans across Northeast Ohio. With 17 locations of care, including 12 outpatient clinics, two community resource and referral centers, a psychosocial rehabilitation and recovery center, a chronic dialysis center, and an outpatient surgery center, VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System’s quality services are easily accessible to Veterans in 21 counties. VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System also contributes to the future of medicine through education, training, and research programs.

For more information about programs and services offered by VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System, visit www.cleveland.va.gov or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or X @ClevelandVAMC.

Sarah Amato, Deputy Public Affairs Officer

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