CONNECTICUT — Five of Connecticut’s 69 home-health agencies are considered “high performing,” according to a first-ever ranking from U.S. News & World Report intended to guide Americans seeking high-quality health care in their homes after a hospital stay or illness.
U.S. News said 2026 Best Home Health rankings come as demand for post-acute care continues to rise. More than 12,000 Medicare-certified home health agencies were evaluated in the inaugural ranking, which highlights providers that patients and their families should consider when navigating their care options, in consultation with their physicians.
Nationally, 1,319 agencies earned the Best Home Health Distinction for exceeding expectations in quality care and patient experience. Another 5,288 agencies met those standards.
In Connecticut, high-performing agencies include:
“For patients recovering from surgery or managing a chronic condition, the quality of care they receive at home can be the difference between a successful recovery and a costly rehospitalization,” Ben Harder, chief of health analysis and managing editor at U.S. News, said in a news release.
“Families often must make crucial post-acute care decisions during stressful times and on very short notice,” Harder continued. “These new ratings are intended to serve as a helpful starting point, offering a clear view of agencies that have demonstrated a track record of positive patient outcomes and satisfied consumers.”
Here’s how U.S. News said the agencies in the top tier of its rankings compare to the national average:
Faster Start Times: Best Home Health agencies began care on time for 99 percent of patients, beating the national average of 94 percent. Prompt initiation of care can help patients manage their transition from hospital to home, getting the recovery off to a good start. Better Mobility: 93 percent of patients who received care from top-rated agencies saw an improvement in walking and moving, compared to just 83 percent nationwide. Recovering mobility that may have been lost during a hospitalization is often an important goal of home health. Daily Independence: Home health patients treated by top-rated agencies were also more likely than patients nationwide to get better at getting out of bed, bathing themselves and taking their medicines correctly. Improvement in these activities of daily living are important signs of a patient’s recovery.
The Best Home Health methodology developed by U.S. News leverages two data sets from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Data on care quality measures, including timely initiation of care and outcomes such as potentially preventable hospitalizations, were combined with patient experience surveys to produce the ratings.