This year’s study also recognizes 100+ hospitals preventing maternity care deserts.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 10, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — U.S. News & World Report, the global authority in hospital rankings and consumer advice, today announced the 2025 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care ratings. Just half of the hospitals evaluated for the 2025 ratings edition have been named Best Hospitals for Maternity Care.
U.S. News began evaluating maternity care hospitals in 2021, rating hospitals that provide labor and delivery services and submit detailed data to the publication for analysis. For the 2025 edition, 817 hospitals, an all-time high, submitted maternity data for evaluation. These public ratings assist expectant parents, in consultation with their doctors, in making informed decisions about where to receive maternity care for uncomplicated births.
“With a record-breaking number of hospitals evaluated, U.S. News’ 2025 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care ratings represent the most comprehensive resource yet for expectant parents,” said Jennifer Winston, Ph.D., health data scientist at U.S. News. “These high-performing hospitals showcase exceptional care for expectant parents, demonstrating significantly lower C-section rates and severe unexpected newborn complications compared to hospitals not recognized by U.S. News.”
Hospitals rated “Best” for Maternity Care by U.S. News:
- Are 47% more likely to be designated as “Baby-Friendly” by Baby Friendly USA, indicating a hospital has taken important steps to support breastfeeding.
- Have C-section rates 22% lower compared with maternity care hospitals not recognized by U.S. News.
- Have severe unexpected newborn complication rates 44% lower compared with maternity care hospitals not recognized by U.S. News.
- Have episiotomy rates 33% lower compared with maternity care hospitals not recognized by U.S. News.
- Have breast milk feeding rates 12% higher compared with maternity care hospitals not recognized by U.S. News.
- Are 13% more likely to report race/ethnicity data for both C-section and severe unexpected newborn complications compared with maternity care hospitals not recognized by U.S. News.
The 2025 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care ratings also recognize hospitals offering services to underserved communities. Introduced last year, the Maternity Care Access Hospital designation was awarded to 118 hospitals for the 2025 ratings. These essential hospitals serve communities that would be in danger of becoming maternity care deserts if they were to stop providing crucial maternity care services. Fourteen percent of all U.S. News-evaluated hospitals have been designated as Maternity Care Access Hospitals. Seventy-five hospitals have been recognized as both Maternity Care Access Hospitals and Best Hospitals for Maternity Care.
The following ten metropolitan areas, listed in alphabetical order, have the greatest number of Best Hospitals for Maternity Care in the U.S.:
- Chicago
- Dallas-Fort Worth
- Denver
- Detroit
- Los Angeles
- New York
- Philadelphia
- Riverside–San Bernardino
- San Francisco
- Seattle
The U.S. News Best Hospitals for Maternity Care methodology is based entirely on objective measures of quality, such as C-section rates in lower-risk pregnancies, severe unexpected newborn complication rates, exclusive breast milk feeding rates, birthing-friendly practices and reporting on racial/ethnic disparities, among other measures. Refinements to the scoring methodology for the 2025 ratings include increased weighting of the racial and ethnic disparities measure and increased weighting of the birthing-friendly practices measure.
Parents-to-be can research their local hospitals’ performance metrics as well as maternity-related programs, services and support at health.usnews.com to help them decide where to give birth.
For more information, visit Best Hospitals for Maternity Care, Overview of U.S. News 2025 Best Hospitals for Maternity Care, and use #BestMaternityHospitals on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and X.
About U.S. News & World Report
U.S. News & World Report is the global leader for journalism that empowers consumers, citizens, business leaders and policy officials to make confident decisions in all aspects of their lives and communities. A multifaceted media company, U.S. News provides unbiased rankings, independent reporting and analysis, and consumer advice to millions of people on USNews.com each month. A pillar in Washington for more than 90 years, U.S. News is the trusted home for in-depth and exclusive insights on education, health, politics, the economy, personal finance, travel, automobiles, real estate, careers and consumer products and services.
SOURCE U.S. News & World Report, L.P.
