These are safest hospitals in California, new report says. Is yours on the list?
Whether it’s a surgery, a routine checkup or an unexpected trip to the emergency room, patients in California trust that their medical providers will meet a safe, professional standard of care.
The Leapfrog Group, a nonprofit organization that studies patient safety and care, issues Hospital Safety Grade reports twice a year for nearly 3,000 general hospitals in the United States.
Grades are based on several critical factors, including rates of preventable errors, accidents, injuries and infections, as well as the systems hospitals have in place to prevent them.
The group’s latest report, released Dec. 15, and searchable as an online database, recognized 36 California facilities as 2025 Top Hospitals and commended them for “their commitment to patient safety and quality.”
“Top hospitals have better systems in place to prevent medication errors, higher quality maternity care and lower infection rates, among other laudable qualities,” The Leapfrog Group said in its latest report.
According to The Leapfrog Group, here’s where to find the safest hospitals and health systems in California:
What are the safest health systems in California?
According to The Leapfrog Group’s report, 90% of hospitals receiving a safety grade for fall 2025 are part of a health system.
Among hospitals that earned “A” grades, that number is even higher: 94%.
A “health system” is a group of hospitals or facilities owned or run by the same parent company, according to The Leapfrog Group.
“This also holds true for ‘straight A’ hospitals — hospitals earning an A grade for more than two years in a row— with 95% of the 358 Straight A hospitals part of health systems,” the nonprofit organization said.
According to The Leapfrog Group, here are the 10 health systems with the most “A” and “straight A” hospitals:
- 1. HCA Healthcare
- 2. CommonSpirit Health
- 3. AdventHealth
- 4. Kaiser Permanente
- 5. AdvocateHealth
- 6. Prime Healthcare Services
- 7. Defense Health Agency
- 8. Lifepoint Health
- 9. Northwell Health
- 10. Sutter Health
Where are the safest hospitals in California?
Hospitals eligible for the 2025 Top Hospitals list must have earned A grades in the most recent round of scoring, The Leapfrog Group said in its Dec. 15 report.
“The award is not given to a set number of hospitals but rather to all teaching, general, rural and children’s hospitals that meet the high standards defined in each year’s Top Hospital Methodology,” the organization said.
A total of 156 hospitals earned 2025 Top Hospital recognition, including:
- 15 children’s hospitals
- 52 general hospitals
- 16 rural hospitals
- 73 teaching hospitals
According to The Leapfrog Group’s 2025 Top Hospitals report, these are the safest hospitals in California:
- Kaiser Permanente Baldwin Park Medical Center in Baldwin Park
- Kaiser Permanente Fontana Medical Center in Fontana
- Kaiser Permanente Fresno Medical Center in Fresno
- Kaiser Permanente Manteca Medical Center in Manteca
- Kaiser Permanente Modesto Medical Center in Modesto
- Kaiser Permanente Ontario Medical Center in Ontario
- Kaiser Permanente Orange County-Irvine Medical Center in Irvine
- Kaiser Permanente Redwood City Medical Center in Redwood City
- Kaiser Permanente Riverside Medical Center in Riverside
- Kaiser Permanente San Leandro Medical Center in San Leandro
- Kaiser Permanente San Rafael Medical Center in San Rafael
- Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center in Santa Clara
- Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical Center in Sacramento
- Kaiser Permanente South San Francisco Medical Center in San Francisco
- Kaiser Permanente Vacaville Medical Center in Vacaville
- Kaiser Permanente Zion Medical Center in San Diego
- Keck Hospital of USC in Los Angeles
- Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital in Loma Linda
- Loma Linda University Medical Center East Campus in Loma Linda
- Mercy Hospital of Folsom in Folsom
- Montclair Hospital Medical Center in Montclair
- Naval Hospital Twentynine Palms in Twentynine Palm
- Rady Children’s Hospital at Mission in Mission Viejo
- Rady Children’s Hospital Orange County in Orange
- Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital in Santa Barbara
- Sequoia Hospital in Redwood City
- Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital in Grass Valley
- St. John’s Hospital Camarillo in Camarillo
- UCI Health in Orange
- UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland in Oakland
- UCSF Helen Diller Medical Center at Parnassus Heights in San Francisco
- UCSF Medical Center at Mount Zion in San Francisco
- USC Norris Cancer Hospital in Los Angeles
- Valley Children’s Hospital in Madera
- Weed Army Community Hospital in Fort Irwin
- Woodland Memorial Hospital in Woodland
“These honorees are a testament to the extraordinary dedication of these facilities’ entire teams, boards, clinicians, administrators, staff and community volunteers,” Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group, said in the Dec. 15 report. “You don’t achieve results like this without everyone putting their heart into patient care.”
How did The Leapfrog Group come up with its findings?
The Leapfrog Group assigns hospitals a grade from A to F based on their “overall performance in keeping patients safe from preventable harm and medical errors.”
To be considered for a Leapfrog Top Hospital award, a facility must receive an “A” safety grade in Leapfrog’s most recent review.
These hospitals have strong safety systems to help prevent medication mistakes, provide higher-quality maternity care and reduce the risk of infections.
“You should never refuse care in an emergency because of a hospital’s safety grade, but use this website as a guide for planned events and a research tool for potential emergencies,” The Leapfrog Group said on its website.
