Annual ‘Honor Roll’ released, recognizing best children’s hospitals in the US

U.S. News & World Report has shared its annual ranking of the top children’s hospitals in the U.S., after an analysis of how well each safely and effectively provided care for young people in their respective regions of the country. 

The 10 healthcare institutions make up what the publication calls its 2024-2025 Best Children's Hospitals Honor Roll, which equally recognizes each hospital for their exceptional delivery of quality care.

U.S. News & World Report and nonprofit research group RTI International worked together on the rankings, reviewing data on patient outcomes from more than 100 hospitals, zooming in on care delivery for children in need of 11 specialty health services, including pediatric cancer, cardiology, neurology, orthopedics and others. 

For the first time, the outlet included juvenile behavioral health in its analysis. 

“This year’s inclusion of behavioral health as a new specialty is significant, as one in five U.S. children has a mental, emotional, behavioral or developmental disorder, according to the Department of Health and Human Services,” Ben Harder, chief of health analysis and managing editor at U.S. News & World Report, said in a statement. “U.S. News is responding to the growing mental health crisis among America’s youth by giving families a valuable source of behavioral health data as part of our increasingly comprehensive view of pediatric care.”

The 10 hospitals on the list earned a top mark in a specialty or for general pediatric care in its region. They are listed in alphabetical order, with notations added for why each earned its place on the list.