New Hospital Safety Scores Put Spotlight on NYC Patient Care Concerns

Preventable medical errors remain a serious patient safety issue in the United States. Research from Johns Hopkins Medicine study on medical errors estimates that more than 250,000 patients die each year due to avoidable mistakes in healthcare settings. When hospitals fail to maintain proper safety standards, the consequences can be life-altering for patients and families.

While hospitals continue to adopt new safety protocols, care quality still varies widely between facilities. To improve transparency, The Leapfrog Group—an independent national patient safety organization—releases its Hospital Safety Grades twice a year. These safety grades represent one of many factors patients may consider when evaluating healthcare options, as they use a range of safety measures that can be reviewed at The Leapfrog Group Hospital Safety Grade.

In this article, we’ll break down the Spring 2026 Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades for New York City and New York State hospitals, explain the scoring system, and highlight why these ratings matter for patients making healthcare decisions.

Understanding the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades

The Leapfrog Group is an independent nonprofit organization focused on improving healthcare quality and patient safety. The Hospital Safety Grades assign hospitals a letter grade ranging from “A” through “F” based on how well they protect patients from preventable harm.

Rather than evaluating reputation alone, the grades place heavy emphasis on measurable patient safety outcomes and hospital procedures.

The ratings analyze areas such as:

•       Rates of hospital-acquired infections
•       Preventable complications after surgery
•       Medication safety practices
•       Staffing levels and physician oversight
•       Emergency preparedness and safety protocols
•       Communication between providers and patients
•       Safety systems designed to reduce medical errors

The organization compiles information from federal reporting databases and hospital-submitted data to create the rankings. The grades are updated twice annually to reflect changing hospital performance.

NY State Hospital Safety Reports

The Spring 2026 report reflected gradual improvements in patient safety nationwide, including continued progress in reducing healthcare-associated infections and strengthening medication safety practices.

In New York State, out of the 143 facilities graded, most hospitals fell within the higher end of the grading scale, with many earning A and B ratings, while a smaller number received D grades. In the Spring 2026 state rankings, New York rose from 30th to 24th place. This distribution reflects ongoing differences in safety performance across facilities in the state and highlights that patient outcomes can vary significantly depending on where care is received.

Although overall performance trends were positive, the results show that safety concerns persist in certain New York healthcare facilities.

NYC Hospitals Receiving Lower Safety Scores

Not every hospital performed well in the Spring 2026 report. Several New York-area hospitals received “D” grades, including:

•       Brookdale Hospital Medical Center (Brooklyn)
•       Interfaith Medical Center (Brooklyn)
•       St. John’s Episcopal Hospital (Queens)

While no New York hospitals received an “F” grade this cycle, lower grades may indicate areas where hospitals face ongoing patient safety challenges. A low safety grade does not necessarily mean every patient will receive poor care. However, these reports may help identify areas of improvement to focus on first.

Why Patient Safety Data Matters

Hospital safety reports provide transparency that many patients would not otherwise have access to. They can help families make more informed decisions when choosing where to receive treatment.

Strong safety practices are critical because preventable medical mistakes can lead to:

•       Severe infections
•       Surgical injuries
•       Medication complications
•       Delayed treatment
•       Extended hospital stays
•       Long-term disability
•       Wrongful death

When hospitals fail to follow accepted safety standards, the consequences for patients can be devastating.  It’s important to understand your local facility’s strengths and weaknesses to make the most informed decisions about your care. For the full list of graded facilities in NYC, see below.

NYC Hospitals — Spring 2026 Leapfrog Safety Grades

Bronx

BronxCare Health System (C)
Montefiore Einstein Campus (C)
Montefiore Moses Campus (C)
Montefiore Wakefield Campus (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals – Jacobi (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals – Lincoln (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals North Central Bronx (C)
St. Barnabas Hospital (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals – Lincoln (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals – Jacobi (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals North Central Bronx (C)

Manhattan

NewYork-Presbyterian Allen Hospital (A)
NewYork-Presbyterian Columbia University Irving Medical Center (A)
NewYork-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital (A)
NewYork-Presbyterian-Weill Cornell Medical Center (A)
Northwell Lenox Hill Hospital (A)
NYU Langone Hospitals (A)
Mount Sinai Morningside (B)
Mount Sinai West (B)
The Mount Sinai Hospital (B)
NYC Health & Hospitals – Harlem (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals – Bellevue (C)
NYC Health Hospitals – Metropolitan (C)

Brooklyn

NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital (A)
NYU Langone Hospital – Brooklyn (A)
Downstate Health Sciences University, University Hospital at Downstate (C)
Mount Sinai Brooklyn (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals – South Brooklyn Health (B)
The Brooklyn Hospital Center (B)
Maimonides Medical Center (C)
Maimonides Midwood Community Hospital (C)
Wyckoff Heights Medical Center (C)
Brookdale Hospital Medical Center (D)
Interfaith Medical Center (D)
NYC Health and Hospitals Kings County (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals Woodhull (C)

Queens

NYC Health and Hospitals – Queens (B)
NewYork-Presbyterian Queens (A)
Flushing Hospital Medical Center (C)
Jamaica Hospital Medical Center (C)
NYC Health and Hospitals Elmhurst (C)
St. John’s Episcopal Hospital (D)

Staten Island

Richmond University Medical Center (C)
Staten Island University Hospital – North Campus (C)

Pazer, Epstein, Jaffe & Fein, P.C.

At Pazer, Epstein, Jaffe & Fein, P.C., our attorneys represent individuals and families harmed by medical negligence throughout New York. We understand the physical, emotional, and financial toll that preventable medical errors can cause.

If you or a loved one suffered injuries because of unsafe hospital conditions or medical malpractice, our team is here to help you understand your legal rights and options.