Best hospitals in the United States for heart disease: An evidence-based comparison

The best hospitals in the United States for heart disease are identified through several national evaluations, including rankings that examine cardiology, heart surgery, vascular procedures, patient outcomes, and expert assessment. Recent data place NYU Langone Hospitals, NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital-Columbia and Cornell, Mayo Clinic, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Mount Sinai Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital, Northwestern Memorial Hospital, and Cleveland Clinic among the leading U.S. programs. 2

Recent U.S. News cardiology rankings

The 2026-2027 U.S. News cardiology, heart, and vascular surgery evaluation assessed nearly 500 hospitals nationwide. Hospitals first passed an eligibility process involving minimum procedure volumes and a transfer-pattern review designed to identify major referral centers. That process narrowed an initial group of 665 hospitals to 488 eligible institutions. 2

Survival accounted for 45% of the U.S. News score, while the remaining score included discharge-to-home rates, readmission prevention, and patient experience. The evaluation covered eight clinical cohorts: abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, aortic valve surgery, heart arrhythmia, coronary artery bypass surgery, heart attack, heart failure, pacemaker implantation, and transcatheter aortic valve replacement. 2

How other evaluations compare

Rankings are not interchangeable because organizations use different methods and may emphasize different forms of evidence. Cardiovascular Business reported that the updated U.S. News methodology increased the role of quality metrics, with 41 risk-adjusted patient outcomes accounting for 80% of each hospital's score in the 2026 report. The publication also noted that Cleveland Clinic placed eighth after many years near the top of national rankings. 3

Newsweek's 2026 specialized-care ranking produced a different order. Mayo Clinic in Rochester ranked first, Massachusetts General Hospital second, Cleveland Clinic third, NYU Langone Hospital-Tisch fourth, and Johns Hopkins Hospital fifth. The listed standout capabilities included coronary artery disease care, angioplasty and stent placement, bypass surgery, valve surgery, heart transplantation, and chronic ischemic heart disease treatment. 5

Clinical capabilities at leading centers

Major heart centers commonly combine medical cardiology, interventional treatment, cardiac surgery, electrophysiology, vascular medicine, transplantation, and research. The research material identifies Cleveland Clinic's Miller Family Heart, Vascular and Thoracic Institute as a comprehensive program for coronary disease, valve disease, rhythm disorders, heart failure, and congenital heart disease. 9

Mayo Clinic is described as providing multidisciplinary cardiovascular care through cardiology, cardiac surgery, vascular medicine, electrophysiology, and advanced heart-failure services. Johns Hopkins' Heart and Vascular Institute focuses on complex cardiovascular disorders, including structural heart disease, arrhythmias, vascular disease, and heart failure. Mount Sinai Heart provides cardiac surgery, structural-heart care, electrophysiology, and advanced heart-failure services. 9

Specialized treatment and referral considerations

A national ranking does not establish that one hospital is the strongest choice for every diagnosis. Heart disease includes conditions such as coronary artery disease, valve disorders, arrhythmias, heart failure, congenital disease, and vascular disease, and the relevant expertise can differ by condition. Advanced centers may provide catheter-based interventions, catheter ablation, transcatheter valve replacement, ventricular-assist-device therapy, transplantation, and complex cardiac surgery. 9

Referral-center status can matter when a patient needs a procedure requiring specialized teams or coordinated services. The U.S. News eligibility process included a transfer-pattern check, which was intended to distinguish major referral hospitals from other facilities. However, travel, continuity of care, insurance participation, and the availability of the relevant subspecialist can create practical limitations even when a hospital has a high national score. 2

Regional availability and state-level patterns

Access to nationally recognized heart care is concentrated unevenly across the country. California had 20 hospitals classified as high performing in cardiology care in the state-level review, followed by New York with 10 hospitals. The state list identified Cedars-Sinai as California's leading heart hospital in the cited evaluation, with a score of 83.1. 4

State-level leaders can be important for patients who need care closer to home. Examples from the review include Mayo Clinic-Arizona in Phoenix with a score of 72, Intermountain Health Saint Joseph Hospital in Denver with 63, Hartford Hospital with 61.4, University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital with 56.1, and Providence Alaska Medical Center in Anchorage with 56.2. These figures are not directly equivalent to every other ranking because methodology and hospital participation can differ. 4

Quality measures beyond a ranking position

Medicare's Hospital Value-Based Purchasing program evaluates hospitals across clinical care, patient and caregiver experience, care coordination, safety and efficiency, and cost reduction. Among hospitals appearing in the cited U.S. News list, fiscal 2025 total performance scores included 51.08 for Mayo Clinic Rochester, 39.83 for Rush University Medical Center, 38.00 for NYU Langone Hospitals, 35.83 for Penn Presbyterian, and 34.42 for Cleveland Clinic. 8

These figures should be interpreted as a separate quality measure rather than a replacement for condition-specific results. Some hospitals had no available value-based purchasing score in the cited table, including Johns Hopkins Hospital. Patients and referring clinicians can also examine procedure volume, survival, readmission prevention, discharge outcomes, patient experience, nursing resources, technology, and public transparency when comparing programs. 8

Practical risks and questions to evaluate

Hospital selection involves medical and logistical risks that a national ranking cannot resolve. Important questions include whether the hospital regularly treats the specific condition, whether a multidisciplinary team is available, how follow-up will be coordinated, whether clinical trials are relevant, and whether the patient's insurance participates. Travel can complicate postoperative monitoring, rehabilitation, medication management, and communication with local clinicians.

Rankings also represent historical evaluations and should not be treated as a guarantee of an individual outcome. U.S. News advises that finding appropriate heart care requires considering local access and whether a treatment plan is realistic for the patient to follow. The hospital's own clinical scope, publicly reported outcomes, and consultation with qualified medical professionals remain central to a case-specific decision. 1

Sources

1. U.S. News, “A Guide to Finding the Best Heart Care Near You,” https://health.usnews.com/health-care/best-hospitals/articles/a-guide-to-finding-the-best-heart-care-near-you
2. Becker's Cardiology, “50 best hospitals for cardiology, heart and vascular surgery,” https://www.beckerscardiology.com/cardiology/50-best-hospitals-for-cardiology-heart-and-vascular-surgery/
3. Cardiovascular Business, “The best hospitals in the United States for heart care,” https://cardiovascularbusiness.com/topics/patient-care/care-delivery/best-hospitals-united-states-heart-care
4. Becker's Cardiology, “The top heart hospitals by state,” https://www.beckerscardiology.com/cardiology/the-top-heart-hospitals-by-state-us-news/
5. Newsweek, “America's Best Hospitals for Specialized Care 2026: Cardiac Care,” https://rankings.newsweek.com/americas-best-hospitals-for-specialized-care-2026/cardiac-care
6. Modern Healthcare and Premier, “50 Top Cardiovascular Hospitals Program,” https://finance.yahoo.com/news/modern-healthcare-presents-50-top-140500952.html
7. Columbia Cardiology, “Columbia/NYP Once Again Among Nation's Best For Cardiology,” https://www.columbiacardiology.org/news/columbia-nyp-once-again-among-nations-best-cardiology
8. Becker's Cardiology, “Value-based care scores of U.S. News' top 50 heart hospitals,” https://www.beckerscardiology.com/cardiology/value-based-care-scores-of-us-news-top-50-heart-hospitals/
9. General research sources: Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Mount Sinai, Cedars-Sinai, Stanford Health Care, UCLA Health, American Heart Association, CDC, and Medicare Care Compare