HOSP_UR_TEACH indicates the teaching status of the hospital. The hospital's teaching status was obtained from the AHA Annual Survey of Hospitals. The missions of teaching hospitals differ from non-teaching hospitals. In addition, financial considerations differ between these two hospital groups. A hospital is considered a teaching hospital if it has one or more Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) approved residency programs, is a member of the Council of Teaching Hospitals (COTH) or has a ratio of full-time equivalent interns and residents to beds of .25 or higher. Beginning with 2014, there is an increase in the number of hospitals identified as teaching facilities because the AHA Annual Survey showed an increase in facilities with approved residency programs. About this time, the ACGME became the primary organization for residency training approval.

• Non-metropolitan hospitals were not split according to teaching status, because rural teaching hospitals were rare. The metropolitan categorization is a simplified adaptation of the 2003 version of the Urban Influence Codes (UIC) and includes both large and small metropolitan areas.