Montana hospital Medicare penalties
Which Montana hospitals Medicare is penalizing for infections and patient-safety problems in fiscal year 2026, and which had more readmissions than expected.
Safety penalty (HAC)4 of 1136% · U.S. 24%
Excess readmissions7 of 10Above expected on 1+ condition
In the programs11Montana hospitals
Fiscal year2026Penalty year
Every Montana hospital in the programs
Penalized hospitals first. Click a column to sort.
| Hospital | HAC penalty | Readmissions above expected | VBP score |
|---|---|---|---|
| St James HealthcareButte | 1% cut | 2 of 4Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.15 | 40.3 |
| St Peter's HospitalHelena | 1% cut | 1 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.05 | 33 |
| Bozeman Deaconess HospitalBozeman | 1% cut | 0 of 5 | 49.8 |
| Logan Health Medical CenterKalispell | 1% cut | 0 of 5 | 31.4 |
| Billings Clinic HospitalBillings | No | 2 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.06 | 20.1 |
| St Patrick Hospital and Health Sciences CenterMissoula | No | 2 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.04 | 48.9 |
| Benefis Hospitals INCGreat Falls | No | 1 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.02 | 19.8 |
| Community Medical Center INCMissoula | No | 1 of 4Highest: Heart failure 1.04 | 32.2 |
| Great Falls Clinic Medical CenterGreat Falls | No | 1 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.08 | 30.3 |
| P H S Indian Hospital at Browning - BlackfeetBrowning | No | – | – |
| St Vincent HealthcareBillings | No | 0 of 6 | 27.9 |
Questions
Which Montana hospitals does Medicare penalize for patient safety?
4 of 11 Montana hospitals in the program (36%, vs 24% nationally) have their Medicare payments cut 1% in fiscal year 2026: St James Healthcare, St Peter's Hospital, Bozeman Deaconess Hospital, Logan Health Medical Center.
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 Montana, 7 of 10 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.