Best Hospitals For Specialty Care In MD Named In New 2027 Rankings

Over 30 hospitals in Maryland are among those recognized in new national rankings that compare how well hospitals keep patients alive and prevent complications during treatment for heart disease, joint replacement, stroke and other medical conditions.

The 2027 rankings, released Tuesday by Healthgrades, identify hospitals with better outcomes in specific areas of care rather than assigning a single overall ranking to every hospital.

Healthgrades, a website that provides information about doctors and hospitals, evaluated approximately 4,500 hospitals nationwide using data on 31 common medical procedures and conditions. Its annual assessment includes national awards for specialty and outpatient care, along with state rankings in 30 states.

The rankings offer patients a way to compare hospitals before undergoing surgery or seeking treatment for a serious medical condition. They also show that a hospital's performance can vary depending on the type of care a patient needs.

MD Hospital Rankings

In Maryland, 34 hospitals received recognition for specialty care, including The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore for Cardiac Care Excellence and University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center in Towson for Spine Surgery Excellence awards.

The state rankings identify the top three or five eligible hospitals in each of 19 specialties, including cardiac care, orthopedic surgery, joint replacement, stroke care, pulmonary care and gastrointestinal surgery.

The number of ranked hospitals depends on how many facilities in a state qualify for evaluation in a given specialty. States with six or fewer eligible hospitals in a specialty are excluded from that ranking.

Patients can review the state rankings and search for hospitals through Healthgrades.

The company also named hospitals to its national Specialty Excellence Awards, which recognize facilities in the top 15% of eligible hospitals in their respective specialties. More selective distinctions identify the nation’s top 50 or 100 hospitals in certain categories.

Maryland has two hospitals in the top 50:

• The Johns Hopkins Hospital
  Baltimore
  Ranking: 32
  2027 America's Best Specialty Award Count: 7
  2027 Specialty Excellence Award Count:
• University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center
  Towson
  Ranking: 41
  2027 America's Best Specialty Award Count: 4
  2027 Specialty Excellence Award Count: 12

More Surgeries Move Outpatient

The new awards also reflect a shift to outpatient surgery. Hospitals in Maryland earning exemplary ratings include

• Calverthealth Medical Center
  100 Hospital Road, Prince Frederick
  Outpatient Prostate Care Excellence Award
  Critical Care Excellence Award
  Emergency Hospitalization Excellence Award
• Carroll Hospital Center
  200 Memorial Ave., Westminster
  America's 50 Best Outpatient Prostate Care
  Critical Care Excellence Award
• Frederick Health Hospital
  400 W. 7th St., Frederick
  America's 50 Best Outpatient Joint Replacement Award
  America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Prostate Surgery Award
  Outpatient Orthopedic Surgery Excellence Award
• Greater Baltimore Medical Center
  6701 N. Charles St., Baltimore
  Outpatient Joint Replacement Award
  Vascular Surgery Excellence Award
  Outpatient Joint Replacement Excellence Award
• Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center
  5755 Cedar Lane, Columbia
  Outpatient Joint Replacement Award
  Pulmonary Care Excellence Award
• Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center
  2001 Medical Parkway, Annapolis
  Outpatient Prostate Care Excellence Award
• MedStar Franklin Square Medical Center
  9000 Franklin Square Drive, Baltimore
  Outpatient Joint Replacement Award
• MedStar Union Memorial Hospital
  201 E. University Parkway, Baltimore
  America's 50 Best Outpatient Joint Replacement Award
• Mercy Medical Center
  345 Saint Paul St., Baltimore
  Outpatient Prostate Care Excellence Award
• Suburban Hospital
  8600 Old Georgetown Road, Bethesda
  America's 50 Best Outpatient Joint Replacement Award
• The Johns Hopkins Hospital
  1800 Orleans St., Baltimore
  America's 50 Best Outpatient Prostate Care
• TidalHealth Peninsula Regional
  100 E. Carroll St., Salisbury
  Outpatient Joint Replacement Award
• University of MD Charles Regional Medical Center
  5 Garrett Ave., La Plata
  Outpatient Prostate Care Excellence Award
• University of MD Shore Medical Center at Easton
  219 S. Washington St., Easton
  Outpatient Joint Replacement Award
• University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center
  7601 Osler Dr., Towson
  America's 50 Best Outpatient Orthopedic Surgery

According to Healthgrades’ analysis, outpatient hip replacement procedures increased 81% from 2020 to 2025, while inpatient hip replacements declined 75%.

Outpatient knee replacements increased 71% during the same period, while inpatient procedures fell 70%.

The changes reflect a movement toward performing certain procedures without an overnight hospital stay.

Healthgrades separately recognized hospitals for outpatient orthopedic surgery, joint replacement and prostate care.

What The Data Shows

Healthgrades based its inpatient analysis on Medicare patient records from 2023 through 2025, examining deaths and complications associated with specific procedures and medical conditions.

The company estimated that 227,229 deaths and 158,138 complications among Medicare patients over those three years could potentially have been avoided if all hospitals evaluated had performed at the level of hospitals receiving its highest five-star ratings.

Those figures are statistical estimates, not documented cases in which different hospital care would necessarily have prevented a death or complication. They also apply to Medicare patients, rather than all hospital patients nationwide.

Healthgrades adjusts its comparisons for patient risk factors, including age and medical conditions, but the rankings are not a guarantee of an individual patient's outcome.

The results may be particularly useful for patients comparing hospitals for a specific procedure. A hospital recognized for heart surgery, for example, is not necessarily among the highest-rated facilities for orthopedic care.

Healthgrades uses its own methodology to determine which hospitals receive recognition. Its analysis emphasizes clinical outcomes, including mortality and complications, and should be considered alongside other factors such as physician recommendations, insurance coverage, access to specialists and individual medical needs.