New Mexico hospital Medicare penalties
Which New Mexico hospitals Medicare is penalizing for infections and patient-safety problems in fiscal year 2026, and which had more readmissions than expected.
Safety penalty (HAC)11 of 2642% · U.S. 24%
Excess readmissions16 of 23Above expected on 1+ condition
In the programs26New Mexico hospitals
Fiscal year2026Penalty year
Every New Mexico hospital in the programs
Penalized hospitals first. Click a column to sort.
| Hospital | HAC penalty | Readmissions above expected | VBP score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carlsbad Medical CenterCarlsbad | 1% cut | 2 of 4Highest: Heart attack 1.01 | 20.8 |
| Artesia General HospitalArtesia | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.13 | – |
| Los Alamos Medical CenterLos Alamos | 1% cut | 1 of 2Highest: Pneumonia 1.02 | – |
| Plains Regional Medical CenterClovis | 1% cut | 1 of 4Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.01 | 28.4 |
| Presbyterian HospitalAlbuquerque | 1% cut | 1 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.05 | 34.2 |
| UNM HospitalAlbuquerque | 1% cut | 1 of 4Highest: COPD 1.00 | – |
| Crownpoint Phs Indian HospitalCrownpoint | 1% cut | – | – |
| Espanola HospitalEspanola | 1% cut | 0 of 1 | 55.3 |
| Santa Fe Phs Indian HospitalSanta Fe | 1% cut | – | – |
| St Vincent HospitalSanta Fe | 1% cut | 0 of 4 | 37.3 |
| Zuni Indian HospitalZuni Pueblo | 1% cut | – | – |
| Mountain View Regional Medical CenterLas Cruces | No | 5 of 5Highest: Heart attack 1.08 | 20.5 |
| Memorial Medical Center INCLas Cruces | No | 4 of 5Highest: Heart attack 1.08 | 26.7 |
| Eastern New Mexico Medical CenterRoswell | No | 3 of 4Highest: Heart attack 1.07 | 33.8 |
| Three Crosses Regional Hospital LLCLas Cruces | No | 3 of 4Highest: Pneumonia 1.08 | 29.6 |
| Lovelace Medical CenterAlbuquerque | No | 2 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.07 | 21.1 |
| CHRISTUS Southern New MexicoAlamogordo | No | 1 of 5Highest: Heart attack 1.01 | 44.6 |
| Gallup Indian Medical CenterGallup | No | 1 of 2Highest: Heart failure 1.03 | 43.3 |
| Lovelace Women's HospitalAlbuquerque | No | 1 of 2Highest: Pneumonia 1.01 | 41.8 |
| Northern Navajo Medical CenterShiprock | No | 1 of 2Highest: Heart failure 1.06 | 31.5 |
| San Juan Regional Medical CenterFarmington | No | 1 of 4Highest: COPD 1.08 | 17.3 |
| Covenant Health Hobbs HospitalHobbs | No | 0 of 2 | 0 |
| Lovelace Westside HospitalAlbuquerque | No | 0 of 2 | 41.5 |
| Presbyterian Santa Fe Medical CenterSanta Fe | No | 0 of 2 | 49.8 |
| Roosevelt General HospitalPortales | No | 0 of 1 | – |
| Roswell Regional HospitalRoswell | No | 0 of 2 | 40 |
Questions
Which New Mexico hospitals does Medicare penalize for patient safety?
11 of 26 New Mexico hospitals in the program (42%, vs 24% nationally) have their Medicare payments cut 1% in fiscal year 2026: Carlsbad Medical Center, Artesia General Hospital, Los Alamos Medical Center, Plains Regional Medical Center, Presbyterian Hospital, UNM Hospital, Crownpoint Phs Indian Hospital, Espanola Hospital, Santa Fe Phs Indian Hospital, St Vincent Hospital, Zuni Indian Hospital.
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 New Mexico, 16 of 23 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.