New Ulm Medical Center recognized by Chartis as a Top 100 Critical Access Hospital

NEW ULM, Minn. (March 7, 2025) — New Ulm Medical Center in New Ulm, Minn. today announced it has been named among the 2025 Top 100 Critical Access Hospitals by The Chartis Center for Rural Health (Chartis). Chartis’ annual Top 100 award program honors outstanding performance among the nation’s rural hospitals based on the results of the Chartis Rural Hospital Performance INDEX®.

New Ulm Medical Center, part of Allina Health, joins 10 other rural Minnesota hospitals in achieving this honor. More significantly, this is the 12th year Chartis has recognized New Ulm Medical Center with this distinction. Only three other hospitals nationwide have achieved this status.

"We are extremely proud of receiving this recognition, and especially for being a 12-time recipient and having an overall ranking in the 99th percentile," said Toby Freier, president, New Ulm Medical Center. "Each of our dedicated care team members has a hand in this honor as they all play an important role in providing consistently exceptional care."

"The Top 100 Critical Access Hospitals award program elevates the very best performers and helps create a roadmap for those seeking to improve financial and operational performance while continuing to care for the communities they serve," said Michael Topchik, Executive Director, The Chartis Center for Rural Health. "This is our 15th year recognizing the Top 100 Critical Access Hospitals and we’re thrilled to be able to celebrate this milestone with this year’s winners."

The INDEX is the industry’s most comprehensive and objective assessment of rural hospital performance. Leveraging publicly available data, the INDEX is utilized nationwide by rural hospitals, health systems with rural affiliates, hospital associations, and state offices of rural health to measure and monitor performance across a variety of areas impacting hospital operations and finance.