facebook tracking 61 Hospitals in South Dakota: ER Wait Times & Ratings by City

61 hospitals in South Dakota

According to HospitalsInEachState.com's analysis of the October 2026 CMS release, South Dakota has 61 open hospitals in 52 cities, 59 of them with an emergency department. The median emergency room visit lasts 1 hr 54 min, 35 min shorter than the US median of 2 hr 29 min. 13 of the 18 hospitals Medicare rates hold 4 or 5 stars (5 with 5), and the state average is 3.9 stars.

61 hospitals52 cities59 with an ER
Hospitals 61 in 52 South Dakota cities
With an ER 59 97% of hospitals
Median ER visit 1 hr 54 min −35 min vs US
4–5 star hospitals 13 of 18 rated · avg 3.9★

South Dakota has 61 open hospitals across 52 cities. By type: 39 critical access hospitals, 17 acute care hospitals, 2 VA acute care hospitals, 1 rural emergency hospital, 1 children's hospital and 1 psychiatric hospital.

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South Dakota's largest hospital cities

Sioux Falls 6 hospitals · 5 with an ER
Median ER
2 hr
Top rated
Avera Heart Hospital (5★)
Rapid City 3 hospitals · 3 with an ER
Median ER
2 hr 54 min
Top rated
Rapid City Regional Hospital (3★)
Aberdeen 2 hospitals · 2 with an ER
Median ER
2 hr 6 min
Top rated
Sanford Medical Center Aberdeen (4★)
Yankton 2 hospitals · 1 with an ER
Median ER
1 hr 59 min
Top rated
Avera Sacred Heart Hospital (3★)

Top-rated hospitals and shortest ER visits

Highest Medicare star ratings

See every South Dakota ER ranked by wait · See every South Dakota hospital ranked by stars · by patient rating · by infections and safety

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All South Dakota cities with hospitals

All 52 South Dakota cities A–Z
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Largest hospitals in South Dakota

Ranked by beds reported on each hospital's latest Medicare cost report. Largest doesn't mean best, and campuses filing one report are counted together.

See the 100 largest U.S. hospitals

Health insurance in South Dakota

South Dakota uses HealthCare.gov for 2027 individual plans. Insurers whose 2027 Marketplace networks list the most South Dakota hospitals (provider files loaded November 4, 2026):

Health insurance in South Dakota

People and health care in South Dakota

From the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (2020–2024).

Population
907,428
Median age 38
Hospitals per 100,000
6.7
61 hospitals listed · #1 of 50 states
No health insurance
9%
above the U.S. 8.4%
Age 65 and over
18%
above the U.S. 17.2%
Median household income
$75,081
U.S. $80,734

What nurses earn in South Dakota

Registered Nurses · $78,060 Nurse Practitioners · $128,840 Licensed Practical and Licensed Vocational Nurses · $52,750 Nursing Assistants · $38,800 All healthcare salaries in South Dakota
Hospitals per capita by state

Healthcare jobs and pay in South Dakota

Pay for the healthcare jobs with the most workers in South Dakota, from Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data (May 2025).

Registered Nurse (RN) salary in South Dakota CNA salary in South Dakota Home Health and Personal Care Aide salary in South Dakota All South Dakota healthcare salaries

Questions about hospitals in South Dakota

How many hospitals are in South Dakota?

There are 61 open hospitals in South Dakota across 52 cities. 59 of them have an emergency department.

Which South Dakota city has the most hospitals?

Sioux Falls, with 6 hospitals. Rapid City is next with 3.

How long is the ER wait in South Dakota?

The median emergency room visit in South Dakota lasts 1 hr 54 min, 35 min shorter than the US median of 2 hr 29 min. That is a 12-month median from CMS, not a live wait time.

How many South Dakota hospitals have 5 stars?

5 of the 18 South Dakota hospitals with a Medicare overall star rating have 5 stars, and 13 have 4 or 5 stars. The average rating is 3.9 out of 5.

Hospitals in neighboring states

Iowa Minnesota Montana Nebraska North Dakota Wyoming All states

Cite this data

Journalists, researchers and site owners are welcome to quote and chart these figures. They are free to use under CC BY 4.0: please credit HospitalsInEachState.com and link to this page.

Figures as of the October 2026 CMS release Updated automatically when CMS publishes new data Permanent link: hospitalsineachstate.com/hospitals/south-dakota/

South Dakota ER wait times

Source: hospital listings from CMS and public records; emergency room wait times (measure OP-18b) and overall star ratings from CMS Care Compare. Wait times are 12-month medians, not live. Where these figures come from.

Not affiliated with CMS. For a medical emergency, call 911.

Looking for healthcare work in South Dakota? See Jobs in South Dakota on Jobs In Each State, our sister site.