Lakewood Ranch, Sarasota hospitals gain Forbes' recognition

Four hospitals in Manatee and Sarasota counties were listed among Florida’s best on a recent ranking by Forbes magazine’s 2026 Top Hospitals survey.

Lakewood Ranch Medical Center, Sarasota Memorial Hospital’s main campus, its Venice campus and HCA Florida Doctors Hospital in Sarasota were among the 29 statewide medical facilities named by Forbes. It was the first year Forbes compiled such a list, which totaled 253 facilities with five-star rankings and 509 with four-star rankings. More than 5,400 were considered initially, the magazine said.

Only SMH-Sarasota received a five-star overall ranking from the magazine.

Photo by Lesley Dwyer

“We are honored to be recognized as a 2026 Top Hospitals by Forbes,” said Rob J. Anderson, chief executive officer of Lakewood Ranch Medical Center. “This distinction reflects the dedication and expertise of our entire care team who strive daily to provide exceptional, patient-centered care. Being named alongside the hospitals nationwide to earn this recognition underscores our commitment to clinical excellence, innovation, and the well-being of the communities we proudly serve.”

Forbes said its main focus was on clinical patient outcomes.

“These measures were given the most weight and, therefore, had the most influence on each hospital’s overall rating,'' the magazine wrote. "Additionally, these outcomes were statistically adjusted for social drivers of health (SDOH)—such as socioeconomics and access to medical services—because SDOH have been shown to impact outcomes. By adjusting for these factors in the communities surrounding each hospital, our ratings were designed to provide a more level comparison of each hospital’s quality, despite differences among hospitals’ locations and patient populations.”