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The 10 busiest hospitals in Iowa by inpatient discharges

UnityPoint Health - Iowa Methodist Medical Center has the most inpatient discharges of any hospital in Iowa, 39,216, followed by University of Iowa Health Care Medical Center in Iowa City (33,861) and MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center in Des Moines (24,331). Together the 10 leaders hold 180,675 discharges in eight cities.

Updated Inpatient discharges from each hospital's latest Medicare cost reportHow we ranked

Rank by
Location
Iowa
  1. UnityPoint Health - Iowa Methodist Medical CenterDes Moines · UnityPoint Health39,216discharges607beds
  2. University of Iowa Health Care Medical CenterIowa City · The University of Iowa33,861discharges743beds
  3. MercyOne Des Moines Medical CenterDes Moines · Trinity Health24,331discharges519beds
  4. MercyOne Genesis Davenport Medical CenterDavenport · Trinity Health18,805discharges308beds
  5. UnityPoint Health - St. Luke's Hospital - Cedar RapidsCedar Rapids · UnityPoint Health13,884discharges294beds
  6. UnityPoint Health - St. Luke'sSioux City · UnityPoint Health11,579discharges245beds
  7. UnityPoint Health - Allen HospitalWaterloo · UnityPoint Health11,172discharges200beds
  8. Mercy Medical CenterCedar Rapids · Mercy Medical Center9,998discharges216beds
  9. Mary Greeley Medical CenterAmes · City of Ames, IA9,442discharges150beds
  10. MercyOne North Iowa Medical CenterMason City · Trinity Health8,387discharges199beds

The 10 highest of 121 Iowa hospitals that report inpatient discharges. Ranks compare size, not quality of care.

Every hospital in Iowa

The 10 top Iowa hospitals hold 65% of all inpatient discharges

121 Iowa hospitals report inpatient discharges, 277,204 inpatient discharges in all. The 10 on this list hold 180,675 of it. The median hospital has 348 discharges, so UnityPoint Health - Iowa Methodist Medical Center is about 113 times that size.

of all inpatient discharges at Iowa hospitals that report them
65%
the size of the median Iowa hospital, which has 348 discharges
113×
of the 121 Iowa hospitals that report inpatient discharges
8.3%

How we ranked the top Iowa hospitals

Measure
Inpatient discharges from each hospital's latest Medicare cost report.
What counts as a hospital
One CMS certification number. A hospital with several campuses under one number counts once.
Field
121 Iowa hospitals in the Dmand AI database report inpatient discharges.
Ties
Hospitals with the same number share a rank.
What a rank means
Size only. A rank compares inpatient discharges; it says nothing about quality of care.
Refresh
Monthly. Updated Oct 28, 2026.

FAQ

Questions about the top Iowa hospitals

Answers from the same data, updated monthly.

What is the busiest hospital in Iowa?

UnityPoint Health - Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines, with 39,216 discharges. University of Iowa Health Care Medical Center is second with 33,861.

What are the top 10 Iowa hospitals by inpatient discharges?

UnityPoint Health - Iowa Methodist Medical Center (39,216), University of Iowa Health Care Medical Center (33,861), MercyOne Des Moines Medical Center (24,331), MercyOne Genesis Davenport Medical Center (18,805), UnityPoint Health - St. Luke's Hospital - Cedar Rapids (13,884), UnityPoint Health - St. Luke's (11,579), UnityPoint Health - Allen Hospital (11,172), Mercy Medical Center (9,998), Mary Greeley Medical Center (9,442), MercyOne North Iowa Medical Center (8,387).

How many inpatient discharges does a typical Iowa hospital have?

The median Iowa hospital that reports inpatient discharges has 348 discharges, out of 121 that report them.

How often is this list updated?

Every month, when the Dmand AI database refreshes. This version is from Oct 28, 2026.

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    The same ranking for Illinois hospitals.

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    The national ranking by inpatient discharges.

  • Insight

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    Epic runs 43% of Iowa hospitals with an EHR on file.

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