Here are N.J.’s best hospitals for delivering babies, according to U.S. News

U.S. News & World Report has released its list of New Jersey’s best hospitals in maternity care.

Thirty-two hospitals in the state were listed as “high-performing” for meeting a high standard in caring for parents with uncomplicated pregnancies. These hospitals had lower rates of unexpected newborn complications, fewer C-sections, programming for successful breast feeding, and were more likely to track and report outcomes by race and ethnicity, a key step to addressing disparities, according to the site’s analysis.

The hospitals were not ranked beyond receiving “high performing” marks.

Maternal health is a big concern in the U.S., especially given the recent jump in infant mortality. The national infant mortality rate rose 3% in 2022 — the largest increase in two decades, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The rate remained the same in 2023, with a national rate of 5.60 infant deaths per 1,000 live births, compared to Massachusetts, which reported the lowest infant mortality rate of 3.3 infant deaths, followed by New Jersey’s rate of 3.6 in 2023.

A March of Dimes report card released last month on maternal and infant health also showed nearly one out of 10 children in New Jersey was born prematurely last year, putting them at risk for developmental delays, health problems and death. Of this group, 14% were Pacific Islander, 13.1% were Black, 9.9% were Hispanic, 9.7% American Indian/Alaska Native, 8.7% were Asian and 7.9% were white.

This is the second year that U.S. News recognized hospitals serving communities with limited to no access to critical care as “Maternity Care Access Hospitals.” These hospitals provide care to expectant parents who wouldn’t otherwise have access to maternity care and serve communities that would otherwise be maternity care deserts. The report identified 118 of these hospitals.

For the first time, U.S. News also published measures of labor and delivery representation by race and ethnicity, which describe how well a hospital’s patient population compares to the demographics of the surrounding community. Less than 40% of the “Best Hospitals for Maternity Care” — just 160 of 414 hospitals — had non-white patient populations that were comparable to or higher than the community, according to the site’s analysis.

Here are the maternity hospitals that made the list, in alphabetical order:

• AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center- Atlantic City Campus
• Capital Health Medical Center-Hopewell
• CentraState Medical Center
• Chilton Medical Center
• Clara Maass Medical Center
• Community Medical Center-Toms River
• Cooper University Health Care-Camden
• Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center
• Englewood Hospital
• Hackensack University Medical Center
• Jefferson Health-Stratford, Cherry Hill and Washington Township
• Jersey City Medical Center
• Jersey Shore University Medical Center
• JFK University Medical Center
• Monmouth Medical Center
• Morristown Medical Center
• Newark Beth Israel Medical Center
• Newton Medical Center
• Ocean University Medical Center
• Overlook Medical Center
• Palisades Medical Center
• Raritan Bay Medical Center
• Riverview Medical Center
• Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital
• Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset
• Southern Ocean Medical Center
• St. Clare’s Denville Hospital
• St. Peter’s University Hospital
• Trinitas Regional Medical Center
• Virtua Mount Holly Hospital
• Virtua Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital
• Virtua Voorhees Hospital