Iowa hospital Medicare penalties
Which Iowa hospitals Medicare is penalizing for infections and patient-safety problems in fiscal year 2026, and which had more readmissions than expected.
Safety penalty (HAC)16 of 3053% · U.S. 24%
Excess readmissions20 of 29Above expected on 1+ condition
In the programs30Iowa hospitals
Fiscal year2026Penalty year
Every Iowa hospital in the programs
Penalized hospitals first. Click a column to sort.
| Hospital | HAC penalty | Readmissions above expected | VBP score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Genesis Medical Center-DavenportDavenport | 1% cut | 4 of 6Highest: COPD 1.14 | 16.9 |
| Lakes Regional HealthcareSpirit Lake | 1% cut | 3 of 4Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.19 | 59.3 |
| Mercyone Siouxland Medical CenterSioux City | 1% cut | 3 of 6Highest: Pneumonia 1.06 | 19.9 |
| The Finley HospitalDubuque | 1% cut | 3 of 5Highest: Pneumonia 1.04 | 38.3 |
| Spencer Municipal HospitalSpencer | 1% cut | 2 of 4Highest: Pneumonia 1.03 | 58.6 |
| Jennie Edmundson HospitalCouncil Bluffs | 1% cut | 1 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.03 | 40.5 |
| Marshalltown Medical & Surgical CenterMarshalltown | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.03 | 52.7 |
| Mary Greeley Medical CenterAmes | 1% cut | 1 of 5Highest: Heart failure 1.01 | 22 |
| Mercy Medical Center - Cedar RapidsCedar Rapids | 1% cut | 1 of 6Highest: Heart attack 1.05 | 22.7 |
| Southeast Iowa Regional Medical CenterWest Burlington | 1% cut | 1 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.11 | 33.1 |
| Grinnell Regional Medical CenterGrinnell | 1% cut | 0 of 3 | 41.3 |
| Mercyone Newton Medical CenterNewton | 1% cut | 0 of 2 | – |
| Sartori Memorial HospitalCedar Falls | 1% cut | 0 of 1 | – |
| St Lukes Regional Medical CenterSioux City | 1% cut | 0 of 4 | 24.6 |
| Trinity Regional Medical CenterFort Dodge | 1% cut | 0 of 4 | 34.5 |
| University of Iowa Hospital & ClinicsIowa City | 1% cut | 0 of 6 | – |
| Mercy HospitalIowa City | No | 3 of 5Highest: Heart failure 1.07 | 35.1 |
| Alegent Health Mercy HospitalCouncil Bluffs | No | 2 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.03 | 25.3 |
| Allen Memorial HospitalWaterloo | No | 2 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.09 | 32.7 |
| Mercy Medical Center-North IowaMason City | No | 2 of 6Highest: Heart attack 1.10 | 24.6 |
| St Lukes HospitalCedar Rapids | No | 2 of 6Highest: Pneumonia 1.08 | 44.8 |
| Trinity Medical CenterDavenport | No | 2 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.06 | 27.4 |
| Iowa Methodist Medical CenterDes Moines | No | 1 of 6Highest: Heart attack 1.09 | 21.9 |
| Mercy Medical Center-ClintonClinton | No | 1 of 4Highest: COPD 1.02 | 50.9 |
| Mercy Medical Center-Des MoinesDes Moines | No | 1 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.05 | 9.1 |
| Mercy Medical Center-DubuqueDubuque | No | 1 of 4Highest: Heart failure 1.08 | 39.8 |
| Broadlawns Medical CenterDes Moines | No | – | 34 |
| Mercyone Waterloo Medical CenterWaterloo | No | 0 of 5 | 38.2 |
| Ottumwa Regional Health CenterOttumwa | No | 0 of 3 | 18.8 |
| Trinity MuscatineMuscatine | No | 0 of 3 | 28 |
Questions
Which Iowa hospitals does Medicare penalize for patient safety?
16 of 30 Iowa hospitals in the program (53%, vs 24% nationally) have their Medicare payments cut 1% in fiscal year 2026: Genesis Medical Center-Davenport, Lakes Regional Healthcare, Mercyone Siouxland Medical Center, The Finley Hospital, Spencer Municipal Hospital, Jennie Edmundson Hospital, Marshalltown Medical & Surgical Center, Mary Greeley Medical Center, Mercy Medical Center - Cedar Rapids, Southeast Iowa Regional Medical Center, Grinnell Regional Medical Center, Mercyone Newton Medical Center and 4 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 Iowa, 20 of 29 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.