Timely and effective treatments for a heart attack which are essential for patient survival, include appropriate use of thrombolytic therapy (drugs used to break up or dissolve blood clots) and revascularization (restoring blood flow through the coronary arteries). While some patients have higher risks than others, and some die from causes unrelated to the heart attack which brought them to the hospital, some complications leading to death within 30 days may be preventable. A lower rate may indicate that a hospital provides a higher level of patient care.

About this measure

Mortality rate is the statistical measure of the number of people who die within a period of time. The graph above shows the percentage of patients who had a heart attack and died within 30 days of admission to the hospital.

These percentages were calculated from Medicare data. They don't include people in Medicare Advantage Plans (like an HMO or PPO) or people who don’t have Medicare.

In this case, a lower number is better.