Patients' risk of dying from medical mistakes, deadly infections and safety lapses have gotten much worse at the lowest ranked U.S. hospitals, underscoring Americans' need to check ratings of their local hospitals, new research released Wednesday shows.

 

The new analysis is based on data gleaned from about 2,600 U.S. hospitals since 2016. What the findings reveal is that some of the nation's most dangerous medical centers have become even riskier for patients.

 

"These are the avoidable deaths – the deaths that are accidental or the result of a mistake made in the hospital," said Leah Binder, the CEO of the non-profit Leapfrog Group, which issues grades hospitals based on safety and quality. "It doesn’t matter how sick you are – the surgeon and operating room team shouldn’t be leaving sponges or surgical tools in you."