The first report card issued to hospitals statewide shows that 76 percent scored an A or B grade.
New Jersey ranked 12th in the country. The national average is 53 percent.
The inspectors rate safety issues like hospital infections, falls and surgical errors.
Garden State hospitals earned 23 As, 31 Bs and 15 Cs. The two New Jersey hospitals that would have received lower grades were given "grade pending" status. The group conducting the survey did not give any grades lower than a C in its initial report.
Those two hospitals were Lourdes Medical Center Willingboro and Hoboken University Medical Center.
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