He has received numerous honors including the Charles C. Shepard Science Award from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the American Public Health Association, Injury Control and Emergency Health Services Section Distinguished Career Award, and the American Academy of Pediatrics, Section on Injury and Poison Prevention, Physician Achievement Award, the UW School of Public Health Distinguished Alumni Award, and the UW Medicine Minority faculty Mentoring Award. Rivara was elected to the Institute of Medicine (now National Academy of Medicine) in 2005.