U.S. News & World Report, the global authority in hospital rankings and consumer advice, has named West Los Angeles Medical Center along with 12 other Kaiser Permanente Southern California hospitals as a 2025 High Performing medical center for Maternity Care.
This is the highest award a hospital can earn as part of U.S. News’ Best Hospitals for Maternity Care annual study.
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. Best Hospitals for Maternity Care assist expectant parents, in consultation with their prenatal care team, in making informed decisions about where to receive maternity services that best meets their family’s needs.
Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles, Panorama City, Downey, Baldwin Park, South Bay, Fontana, Ontario, Riverside, Anaheim, Irvine, San Diego and Zion medical centers also earned a “High Performing” designation in recognition of maternity care as measured by several factors. They included severe unexpected newborn complication rates, birthing-friendly practices and transparency on racial/ethnic disparities, among other measures.
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“The hospitals recognized by U.S. News as Best Hospitals for Maternity Care showcase exceptional care for expectant parents,” said Jennifer Winston, a health data scientist at U.S. News. “These hospitals demonstrate significantly lower C-section rates and severe unexpected newborn complications compared to hospitals not recognized by U.S. News.”
U.S. News evaluated 817 hospitals from across the United States. Only half of all hospitals evaluated for U.S. News’ 2025 ratings edition were recognized as Best Hospitals for Maternity Care.
“This recognition from U.S. News & World Report highlights the unparalleled dedication and expertise of our team at West Los Angeles Medical Center in providing exceptional care to expectant parents,” said Lilit Zibari, senior vice president and area manager at Kaiser Permanente West Los Angeles. “We’re honored to be acknowledged for delivering outstanding maternity services that prioritize families, uphold the highest standards of clinical excellence, and champion health equity in every aspect of care.”
Dr. Kirk Tamaddon, area medical director at Kaiser Permanente West Los Angeles, said this accolade was achieved in large part by the medical excellence provided by hospital physicians and staff.
“Our care teams work tirelessly to ensure safe, supportive and compassionate maternity care for every family we serve,” he said. “This distinction as a High Performing hospital highlights our focus on evidence-based practices, lower C-section rates, and improving outcomes for all patients, regardless of background or circumstance.”
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 measure
