The Joint Commission’s 2025 Accreditation Overhaul: What Healthcare Organizations Need to Know

On June 30, the Joint Commission announced it is transforming its accreditation process, promising a more streamlined, relevant, and supportive process for hospitals and healthcare organizations. One of the most significant changes is the reduction in the number of accreditation standards — from 1,551 to 774 standards. These changes are intended to reduce unnecessary administrative burden and ensure that every standard serves a purpose. Every standard was evaluated for redundancy, practicality, relevance, and obsolescence to ensure that the utility of the standard was not disproportionate to the burden placed on healthcare entities. 

The new model, Accreditation 360: The New Standard, will take effect January 1, 2026 and be available online to the general public to increase transparency. According to the Joint Commission, the Accreditation 360 model is designed to be “dynamic, constantly evolving, forward-looking process that fosters continuous engagement and improvement, accountability, and lasting impact in healthcare quality and safety.” 

The Joint Commission cited several key elements of its new program, Accreditation 360, including:

1. Personalized and Simplified Accreditation Experience: Customizes the accreditation process to reflect the unique needs, size, and complexity of each organization and provides flexible pathways and options, allowing each organization to focus on most relevant compliance features for its services and patient populations.
2. Continuous Readiness and Integration: Encourages organizations to maintain ongoing compliance by embedding accreditation standards into daily operations in order to foster a culture of safety and quality.
3. Collaborative Partnership: Establishes a supportive relationship between The Joint Commission and healthcare organizations, offering guidance, resources, and tailored support.
4. Data-Driven Improvement: Promotes the use of data, performance metrics, and evidence-based practices, specifically shifting the focus from observation to outcome-focused measures.
5.  Education and Survey Integration: Provides ongoing education, training, and resources while making the survey process a routine part of quality management to reduce disruption to operations.

For hospitals and healthcare organizations, these changes present both opportunities and challenges. The streamlined standards may reduce the compliance burden, however, organizations will need to adapt from deeply rooted, robust accreditation criteria to a new paradigm that emphasizes continuous improvement and data-driven decision-making to maintain critical accreditation for Medicare participation.