SARASOTA, Fla. (Dec. 9, 2025) – Sarasota Memorial Health Care System (SMH) was recognized in Forbes’ first-ever list of the top hospitals in the United States. The media company’s inaugural “Top Hospitals 2026” list released this month identifies high-quality general acute care facilities nationwide demonstrating superior clinical outcomes, best practices, value and patient experience.
To develop the list, Forbes partnered with Inovalon, a healthcare data and analytics firm, as well as nationally recognized measurement experts, physicians, statisticians, health policy researchers and patient advocates. Their methodology placed the most weight on clinical outcomes and quality measurements obtained from federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) provider data, including mortality and readmission rates.
Forbes assigned from one to five stars across different quality metrics to calculate a hospital’s overall score. Of nearly 3,000 hospitals evaluated, SMH-Sarasota ranked in the 90th percentile and earned Forbes’ highest 5-star rating for overall care. SMH’s newer campus, SMH-Venice, received 4-stars for overall care and 5-stars for patient experience.
It’s not the first time SMH has been recognized for 5-star care. Forbes’ star ratings are similar to those issued by CMS. Over the past 10 years, SMH has remained the only hospital in Florida – and among just 17 in the nation – to repeatedly earn 5-star ratings from the federal government since CMS began issuing overall star ratings to hospitals in 2016.
Sarasota Memorial CEO David Verinder commended the health system’s physicians and staff for their commitment to the community and SMH’s unwavering public mission. Founded in 1925, the community-owned health system’s vision has long been “to be the best place to be a patient, the best place to work and the best place to practice medicine.”
“Throughout Sarasota Memorial’s 100-year history, the people who work here and their dedication to this community have always set us apart,” Verinder said. “SMH is proud to set the benchmark for quality care here and across the nation.”
About Sarasota Memorial Health Care System
Sarasota Memorial Health Care System is a regional medical center offering Southwest Florida’s greatest breadth and depth of care, with 2,500 physicians and advanced practice providers and nearly 2 million patient visits a year across its network of care. Sarasota County’s largest employer, the community-owned health system includes two full-service hospitals in Sarasota and Venice, freestanding ERs in North Port and Lakewood Ranch, a rehabilitation hospital, behavioral health hospital, skilled nursing facility and comprehensive network of outpatient centers, urgent care clinics and physician practices. Founded in 1925, SMH is celebrating its 100-year anniversary in 2025 and encouraging community members to visit smh.com/100 throughout the year for centennial events and updates.