WASHINGTON, DC – The 2008 U.S. News & World Report issue of “America’s Best Hospitals” ranks the National Rehabilitation Hospital (NRH) as one of the nation’s top rehab hospitals. Each year the Survey honors America’s 25 leading rehabilitation hospitals for outstanding work in handling difficult or complex cases. This year NRH ranks 11th in the country and is one of only two hospitals in Washington, DC to be honored in the annual report. NRH is the youngest medical rehabilitation hospital of those recognized by the magazine’s national survey. Founded in 1986, NRH is just 22 years old and the average age of the other hospital's ranked is 55.

“We are very proud to be recognized by U.S. News & World Report for our efforts in providing our patients with high quality healthcare,” said NRH President and CEO Edward A. Eckenhoff. “This ranking is testament to the dedication, commitment and experience of our staff and the support of our community. We are grateful to our colleagues for this recognition and it inspires us to continue to provide our patients with compassionate care and innovative programs and techniques, which will empower them to lead productive, independent lives.”

The ranking process for “America’s Best Hospitals” is very strict. Out of 5,453 hospitals evaluated this year, only 170 scored high enough to be ranked within a specialty. The listing is determined by a survey of board-certified specialists in physical medicine and rehabilitation, who are asked to identify those hospitals that are the leaders in their specialty without regard to location or cost.

For the past 14 of its 22 year history, NRH has consistently ranked among the nation’s top rehabilitation hospitals. It is known for cutting edge research and innovations to help patients regain abilities lost to injury or illness. Annually, NRH admits approximately 2,200 inpatients and provides nearly 350,000 ambulatory visits at 40 NRH Regional Rehab outpatient sites located in Washington, D.C., Suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia. Over the course of 21 years, NRH has admitted in excess of 35,000 inpatients and provided over 2 million outpatient visits. NRH has 128 adult beds as well as 9 pediatric beds in the National Center for Children's Rehabilitation at NRH, a joint service of NRH and Children's National Medical Center.

NRH is a proud member of MedStar Health, a $3.1 billion non-profit health care organization and a community based network of eight hospitals and other health care services in the Baltimore/Washington region. NRH’s sister hospital Washington Hospital Center was also recognized in this year’s survey as one of the 20 best heart hospitals in the nation.