Alabama hospital Medicare penalties
Which Alabama hospitals Medicare is penalizing for infections and patient-safety problems in fiscal year 2026, and which had more readmissions than expected.
Safety penalty (HAC)28 of 7338% · U.S. 24%
Excess readmissions57 of 64Above expected on 1+ condition
In the programs73Alabama hospitals
Fiscal year2026Penalty year
Every Alabama hospital in the programs
Penalized hospitals first. Click a column to sort.
| Hospital | HAC penalty | Readmissions above expected | VBP score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baptist Medical Center SouthMontgomery | 1% cut | 5 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.09 | 29.1 |
| Shelby Baptist Medical CenterAlabaster | 1% cut | 5 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.10 | 22.7 |
| D C H Regional Medical CenterTuscaloosa | 1% cut | 4 of 4Highest: COPD 1.17 | 19.5 |
| Thomas HospitalFairhope | 1% cut | 4 of 6Highest: Pneumonia 1.07 | 30.1 |
| Baptist Medical Center EastMontgomery | 1% cut | 3 of 4Highest: Heart failure 1.10 | 31.3 |
| Dekalb Regional Medical CenterFort Payne | 1% cut | 3 of 5Highest: Heart failure 1.08 | 30.6 |
| Gadsden Regional Medical CenterGadsden | 1% cut | 3 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.17 | 24.7 |
| Jackson Hospital & Clinic INCMontgomery | 1% cut | 3 of 5Highest: Heart failure 1.02 | 30.9 |
| Mizell Memorial HospitalOpp | 1% cut | 3 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.06 | – |
| Mobile InfirmaryMobile | 1% cut | 3 of 6Highest: COPD 1.10 | 19.9 |
| East Alabama Medical Center and SnfOpelika | 1% cut | 2 of 6Highest: Heart attack 1.05 | 27.4 |
| Fayette Medical CenterFayette | 1% cut | 2 of 3Highest: COPD 1.01 | 34.3 |
| Northeast Alabama Regional Med CenterAnniston | 1% cut | 2 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.34 | 20.1 |
| St Vincent's St ClairPell City | 1% cut | 2 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.06 | – |
| Bryan W Whitfield Mem Hosp INCDemopolis | 1% cut | 1 of 2Highest: Heart failure 1.04 | 33.5 |
| Citizens Baptist Medical CenterTalladega | 1% cut | 1 of 2Highest: Pneumonia 1.12 | 32.5 |
| Dale Medical CenterOzark | 1% cut | 1 of 1Highest: Pneumonia 1.00 | – |
| Highlands Medical CenterScottsboro | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: COPD 1.01 | 38.5 |
| Huntsville HospitalHuntsville | 1% cut | 1 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.04 | 18.3 |
| Marshall Medical Center SouthBoaz | 1% cut | 1 of 4Highest: Heart failure 1.01 | 20.9 |
| North Baldwin InfirmaryBay Minette | 1% cut | 1 of 2Highest: Pneumonia 1.03 | 40.5 |
| North Mississippi Health Services - South MarionWinfield | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.01 | – |
| Prattville Baptist HospitalPrattville | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.04 | 30.3 |
| USA Health University HospitalMobile | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.02 | 19.5 |
| Bibb Medical CenterCentreville | 1% cut | 0 of 1 | – |
| Clay County HospitalAshland | 1% cut | 0 of 1 | – |
| Medical West, an Affiliate of UAB Health SystemBessemer | 1% cut | 0 of 3 | 18 |
| St Vincent's ChiltonClanton | 1% cut | 0 of 1 | – |
| Riverview Regional Medical CenterGadsden | No | 5 of 5Highest: Pneumonia 1.12 | 27.8 |
| Flowers HospitalDothan | No | 4 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.39 | 32.6 |
| St Vincent's BirminghamBirmingham | No | 4 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.11 | – |
| University of Alabama HospitalBirmingham | No | 4 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.38 | 28.8 |
| Athens-Limestone HospitalAthens | No | 3 of 4Highest: Pneumonia 1.08 | 32.9 |
| Crestwood Medical CenterHuntsville | No | 3 of 5Highest: Heart attack 1.13 | 24.4 |
| Grandview Medical CenterBirmingham | No | 3 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.15 | 21.1 |
| Helen Keller Memorial HospitalSheffield | No | 3 of 4Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.22 | 33.3 |
| North Alabama Medical CenterFlorence | No | 3 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.05 | 25.8 |
| Providence HospitalMobile | No | 3 of 6Highest: Heart attack 1.14 | – |
| South Baldwin Regional Medical CenterFoley | No | 3 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.27 | 37.4 |
| Springhill Medical CenterMobile | No | 3 of 6Highest: COPD 1.07 | 22.4 |
| St Vincent's EastBirmingham | No | 3 of 5Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.12 | – |
| Andalusia Regional HospitalAndalusia | No | 2 of 4Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.15 | 31.4 |
| Coosa Valley Medical CenterSylacauga | No | 2 of 3Highest: Pneumonia 1.13 | 37.4 |
| Cullman Regional Medical CenterCullman | No | 2 of 5Highest: COPD 1.07 | 22.9 |
| Princeton Baptist Medical CenterBirmingham | No | 2 of 6Highest: Heart attack 1.08 | 19.8 |
| Russell HospitalAlexander City | No | 2 of 5Highest: COPD 1.02 | 25.6 |
| Russellville HospitalRussellville | No | 2 of 3Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.28 | – |
| Vaughan Reg Med Center Parkway CampusSelma | No | 2 of 3Highest: Pneumonia 1.08 | 30 |
| Walker Baptist Medical CenterJasper | No | 2 of 3Highest: COPD 1.03 | 31 |
| Atmore Community HospitalAtmore | No | 1 of 1Highest: Heart failure 1.04 | – |
| Brookwood Medical CenterBirmingham | No | 1 of 5Highest: Heart failure 1.00 | 16.2 |
| D W McMillan Memorial HospitalBrewton | No | 1 of 2Highest: Heart failure 1.02 | 17.3 |
| Elmore Community HospitalWetumpka | No | 1 of 1Highest: Pneumonia 1.01 | – |
| Evergreen Medical CenterEvergreen | No | 1 of 3Highest: Pneumonia 1.02 | 40.1 |
| Jack Hughston Memorial HospitalPhenix City | No | 1 of 1Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.02 | 54 |
| Lake Martin Community HospitalDadeville | No | 1 of 1Highest: Pneumonia 1.02 | – |
| Lakeland Community HospitalHaleyville | No | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.01 | 29.9 |
| Marion Regional Medical CenterHamilton | No | 1 of 2Highest: Pneumonia 1.00 | – |
| Medical Center EnterpriseEnterprise | No | 1 of 4Highest: COPD 1.02 | 39.8 |
| Southeast Alabama Medical CenterDothan | No | 1 of 6Highest: Heart failure 1.02 | 32.2 |
| Troy Regional Medical CenterTroy | No | 1 of 2Highest: Heart failure 1.04 | 42 |
| Bullock County HospitalUnion Springs | No | – | – |
| Cherokee Medical CenterCentre | No | 0 of 1 | – |
| Community Hospital INCTallassee | No | – | – |
| Decatur General HospitalDecatur | No | 0 of 5 | 27.3 |
| Greene County HospitalEutaw | No | – | – |
| Grove Hill Memorial HospitalGrove Hill | No | – | – |
| Hale County HospitalGreensboro | No | – | – |
| Hill Hospital of Sumter CountyYork | No | – | – |
| Jackson Medical CenterJackson | No | 0 of 1 | – |
| L V Stabler Memorial HospitalGreenville | No | – | – |
| Shoals HospitalMuscle Shoals | No | – | – |
| Wiregrass Medical CenterGeneva | No | – | – |
Questions
Which Alabama hospitals does Medicare penalize for patient safety?
28 of 73 Alabama hospitals in the program (38%, vs 24% nationally) have their Medicare payments cut 1% in fiscal year 2026: Baptist Medical Center South, Shelby Baptist Medical Center, D C H Regional Medical Center, Thomas Hospital, Baptist Medical Center East, Dekalb Regional Medical Center, Gadsden Regional Medical Center, Jackson Hospital & Clinic INC, Mizell Memorial Hospital, Mobile Infirmary, East Alabama Medical Center and Snf, Fayette Medical Center and 16 more.
What does a readmission ratio above 1.00 mean?
It means the hospital's Medicare patients were readmitted within 30 days more often than CMS expected for similar patients. In Alabama, 57 of 64 rated hospitals were above 1.00 on at least one condition.
HAC: the quarter of hospitals with the worst hospital-acquired condition scores get a 1% cut to Medicare inpatient payments. Readmissions: a ratio above 1.00 means more readmissions than expected; whether payments are cut depends on how the hospital compares with similar hospitals, so a ratio above 1.00 alone isn't a penalty. VBP: Value-Based Purchasing total performance score out of 100. How the penalties work.