Children’s National ranked among top children’s hospitals nationwide and highest in the DMV by U.S. News & World Report

Children’s National in Washington, D.C., was once again ranked as a top hospital in the nation by the U.S. News & World Report 2026-27 Best Children’s Hospitals annual rankings. This marks the 10th straight year Children’s National has made the Honor Roll, a distinction awarded to only 10 children’s hospitals nationwide.

Children’s National also ranked in all 11 specialty services and is the highest U.S. News ranked children’s hospital in Washington, D.C, Maryland and Virginia. Recently, U.S. News introduced pediatric & adolescent behavioral health as a service line in its rankings. While there are no ordinal rankings for behavioral health, the Children’s National program was named one of the top 50 programs in the country for the third year in a row.

“We’re so proud to reach this milestone of being named among the nation’s top children’s hospitals for the 10th year in a row,” said Michelle Riley-Brown, MHA, FACHE, president and chief executive officer of Children’s National. “Our leadership in specialties like neurology, cancer, neonatology, and diabetes and endocrinology underscores our belief that kids are our everything. It also shows what’s possible when our teams bring their expertise, commitment and heart to make sure every child receives the best care.”

The annual rankings are the most comprehensive source of quality-related information on U.S. pediatric hospitals and recognize the nation’s top 50 pediatric hospitals based on a scoring system developed by U.S. News.

“Earning a place on U.S. News’ Best Children’s Hospitals list is a testament to Children’s National’s dedication to clinical excellence and patient safety,” said Ben Harder, chief of health analysis and managing editor at U.S. News. “These rankings highlight the standout hospitals in each specialty and each region.”

The bulk of the score for each specialty service is based on quality and outcomes data. The process includes a survey of relevant specialists across the country who are asked to list hospitals they believe provide the best care for patients with the most complex conditions.

The Children’s National specialties ranked in the top 10 nationally by U.S. News are:

• Neurology and Neurosurgery (No. 5), led by Division Chiefs William D. Gaillard, MD, and Robert F. Keating, MD
• Neonatology (No. 7), led by Division Chief Billie Lou Short, MD
• Diabetes and Endocrinology (No. 7), led by Division Chief Andrew Dauber, MD, MMSc
• Cancer (No. 7), led by Division Chief Eugene Hwang, MD
• Orthopedics (No. 9), led by Division Chief Matthew Oetgen, MD, MBA
• Gastroenterology and GI Surgery (No. 9), led by Division Chiefs Ian Leibowitz, MD, Mikael Petrosyan, MD, MBA, and Marc Levitt, MD

The other specialties ranked among the top 50 are Behavioral Health, Cardiology and Heart Surgery, Nephrology, Pulmonology and Lung Surgery, and Urology.