An independent study by HealthGrades of patient outcomes at America’s hospitals found that patients at 5-star rated hospitals had a 72 percent lower risk of dying when compared with patients at 1-star-rated hospitals — an enormous gap that has held steady over years even as overall mortality rates improved.

Johnson & Johnson became the latest large healthcare group to expand into vaccines with the launch of a $2.3 billion takeover offer for the Dutch company Crucell, according to the Financial Times (registration required).

Another day, another bit of national recognition for Ohio’s hospitals.Thirty-seven hospitals in the state rank among the top 5 percent in the nation for emergency care, according to a study released from a national healthcare ratings company.The company, HealthGrades, analyzed mortality data of patients admitted through the emergency department for the 11 most-common life-threatening illnesses [...]

Highlights of the important and the interesting from the world of healthcare:Congress to keep pressure on nonprofit hospitals: Whether or not you think nonprofit hospitals should be held to strict standards about the amount of charity care they provide, we can all be happy that the issue has provided some much needed bipartisanship in Washington, [...]

The Austen BioInnovation Institute in Akron plans to award its first six research grants for $100,000 each by mid-February.

Just in case anyone needed a reminder which is the world’s the most recognizable health-care system, God, The Onion — or both — sent a reminder. But are hospitals so comfortable with social media that they cheer when The Onion singles them out?

HealthGrades, the independent health-care ratings organization, has named eight Ohio hospitals to its America’s 50 Best Hospitals for 2009 list. Hospitals named to the list “represent an elite group of the highest-performing health care organizations in the nation,” HealthGrades says.