The National Quality Forum's annual National Quality Healthcare Award recipient is selected through a blinded review by a panel of judges representing purchasers, government, health systems, clinicians and consumers. The award is given in partnership with Modern Healthcare.

This year's judges were:

Tanya Alteras
Associate director, Consumer-Purchaser Disclosure Project
National Partnership for Women & Families
Washington

Dr. Donald Casey Jr.
Vice president of quality and chief medical officer
Atlantic Health System
Morristown, N.J.

Bill Corley
Specialist consultant
Health Performance Improvement
Virginia Beach, Va.

Dr. Thomas James III
Medical Director, National Network
Humana
Louisville, Ky.

Dr. William Golden
Medical director, health policy
Arkansas Medicaid Enterprise at the Arkansas Department of Human Services

Rachel Nelson
Senior advisor to the chief scientific officer
Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, Washington

Dr. Sunil Sinha
Vice president of medical affairs
Bon Secours Memorial Regional Medical Center
Mechanicsville, Va.

Kathleen Szumanski
Director, Institute of Quality, Safety and Injury Prevention
Emergency Nurses Association
Des Plaines, Ill.