CMS certification 21007F
Walter Reed National Military Med Cen
4494 Palmer Rd N, Bethesda, MD 20814
CMS does not publish an overall star rating for Walter Reed National Military Med Cen. 84% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 4 min in its emergency department before leaving (US median 2 h 42 min).
Every figure on this page is published by CMS; we arrange and explain it, and score nothing ourselves.
What patients said
Answers from patients who stayed here, collected by CMS in the national HCAHPS survey: 1,825 completed surveys, 36% response rate, Oct 2024 – Sep 2025.
Emergency department
How long emergency patients spent here and how some time-critical care went, from CMS's timely and effective care measures, Oct 2024 – Sep 2025. CMS classes this emergency department's patient volume as medium; busier departments tend to have longer times, so the national median for departments of the same volume is shown too. These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.
| Measure | This hospital | MD | US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median time in the emergency department before leaving Lower is better · 408 visits sampled · US median for EDs of the same volume: 2 h 45 min | 3 h 4 min | 4 h 6 min | 2 h 42 min |
| Left before being seen Lower is better · 23,008 patients | 1% | 3% | 2% |
| Severe sepsis and septic shock: all recommended care given Higher is better · 52 patients | 54% | 65% | 65% |
How Walter Reed National Military Med Cen compares with nearby hospitals
The closest hospitals of the same kind that CMS rates or surveys - the same city first, then the same county and ZIP area. Every figure is CMS's: the overall star rating, the share of patients who would definitely recommend the hospital, the median time emergency patients spent before leaving, and how many death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS found better or worse than the national rate.
| Hospital | CMS stars | Would recommend | ER median time | Vs the nation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walter Reed National Military Med CenThis hospital | Not rated | 84% | 3 h 4 min | — |
| Suburban HospitalSame city | 4/5 | 83% | 3 h 44 min | 3 better 2 worse |
| Medstar Montgomery Medical CenterSame county · Olney | 3/5 | 61% | 4 h 19 min | 1 better 1 worse |
| Adventist Healthcare Shady Grove Medical CenterSame county · Rockville | 2/5 | 68% | 3 h 24 min | 2 better 3 worse |
| Holy Cross Germantown HospitalSame county · Germantown | 1/5 | 68% | 3 h 53 min | 2 worse |
| Adventist Healthcare White Oak Medical CenterSame county · Silver Spring | 3/5 | 76% | 4 h 56 min | 1 better 2 worse |
Hospitals differ in size and in how sick their patients are. CMS adjusts its outcome measures for that, but a star or a percentage is a starting point for questions, not a verdict. All hospitals in Bethesda.
Infections caught in the hospital
Standardized infection ratio: 1.0 means as many infections as CMS predicted for a hospital like this one. Lower is better. Data from Oct 2024 – Sep 2025.
| Measure | CMS comparison | This hospital | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bloodstream infections from central lines (CLABSI) | No different | 0.25 likely 0.01 – 1.22 | 1 |
| Urinary tract infections from catheters (CAUTI) | Better | 0 | 1 |
| C. diff intestinal infections | Better | 0.41 likely 0.15 – 0.91 | 1 |
3 more measures had too few cases here to report.
Not reported for this hospital
CMS had too few cases here to publish results for deaths, complications, readmissions and return visits. That is common at small, rural and specialty hospitals, and says nothing either way about quality.
Clinicians registered at this address
109 clinicians give this hospital's street address as their practice location in NPPES, the federal provider registry, plus 14 residents and trainees. The same address can take in offices and clinics in the building, and a listing does not prove admitting privileges or current employment.
| Specialty | Clinicians |
|---|---|
| Military Health Care Provider | 17 |
| General Practice | 9 |
| Clinical | 7 |
| Internal Medicine | 7 |
| Psychiatry | 5 |
| Dentist | 4 |
| Emergency Medicine | 4 |
| Pediatrics | 3 |
| Allergy & Immunology | 2 |
| Critical Care Medicine | 2 |
| Diagnostic Radiology | 2 |
| Dietitian, Registered | 2 |
First 12 alphabetically
How to read this page
- Everything here is published by CMS on Care Compare. We arrange it and explain it; the star ratings and the better / worse verdicts are CMS's, not ours.
- “No different” is the most common result on most measures at most hospitals. CMS only calls a result better or worse when the difference from the national rate is statistically clear.
- Death, complication and readmission rates are adjusted by CMS for how sick patients were, so hospitals that treat sicker patients can be compared fairly.
- Infection results are ratios: 1.0 means as many infections as CMS predicted for a hospital like this one, below 1.0 is fewer.
- These are hospital-wide results. They do not rate an individual doctor, nurse or department, and they are not medical advice.
CMS Care Compare data retrieved 4 Oct 2026, refreshed weekly. Where this data comes from and how we handle it · Report an error
Common questions about Walter Reed National Military Med Cen
Would patients recommend Walter Reed National Military Med Cen?
84% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. The figure comes from 1,825 completed HCAHPS surveys.
How long is the wait in the Walter Reed National Military Med Cen emergency room?
Emergency patients spend a median of 3 h 4 min in its emergency department before leaving (US median 2 h 42 min). Among US emergency departments with medium patient volume, like this one, the median is 2 h 45 min. 1% of emergency patients left before being seen (US 2%). These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.