EAMC Recognized on Newsweek’s 2025 List of America’s Best-In-State Hospitals

OPELIKA, Ala.—East Alabama Medical Center (EAMC) has been recognized on Newsweek’s 2025 list of America’s Best-In-State Hospitals. This prestigious award recognizes top hospitals at a state level, and is presented in collaboration with Statista, the world-leading statistics portal and industry ranking provider.

“Our organization is incredibly honored to be recognized as one of Alabama’s best hospitals,” said Laura Grill, president and CEO of East Alabama Health. “Every member of our staff is committed to providing high-quality, compassionate health care to those in our community. We set high expectations for ourselves as the region’s health care provider of choice, and this achievement speaks to our dedication to meeting those expectations.” 

The America’s Best-In-State Hospitals 2025 ranking was created to identify the top hospitals at the state level. Hospitals were evaluated based on quality metrics, patient experience data, a nationwide survey of medical professionals and a voluntary patient-reported outcomes measure implementation survey. As a result, the 700 hospitals that scored the highest across these criteria were included on the list. EAMC is one of just 13 Alabama hospitals to be recognized. 

The Newsweek recognition comes as East Alabama Health continues to make investments in expanding local access to critical services. 

A three-story expansion project at EAMC will bring an additional 30 critical care beds. The project is expected to be completed in late-2025 with the first patients being treated in January 2026. In addition, the hospital building a freestanding Center for Mental Health to increase the number of psychiatry beds available for the community. 

“Our region is one of the fastest growing in the state, and along with that is the need for expanded access to care, a need we strive to meet head-on,” Grill said. “Not only does this allow residents in our own community to receive a full array of services locally, but we’re attracting patients from cities one-to-three hours away who need these specialized services as well.” 

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About East Alabama Health

East Alabama Health encompasses East Alabama Medical Center in Opelika, EAMC-Lanier Rural Emergency Hospital in Valley, the Spencer Cancer Center in Opelika, the Auburn Medical Pavilion and a host of other key medical clinics and practices that help provide a continuum of care to patients throughout an 11-county area. EAMC is a 314-bed regional referral hospital that is currently under construction to add 30 critical care beds. EAMC-Lanier Rural Emergency Hospital provides emergency and outpatient services while its campus also features a nursing home and an ambulatory surgery center. East Alabama Health employs about 3,800 people and is the second largest employer in the region, trailing only Auburn University. For more information, visit www.eastalabamahealth.org.