Tennessee hospital Medicare penalties
Which Tennessee hospitals Medicare is penalizing for infections and patient-safety problems in fiscal year 2026, and which had more readmissions than expected.
Safety penalty (HAC)15 of 7819% · U.S. 24%
Excess readmissions59 of 71Above expected on 1+ condition
In the programs78Tennessee hospitals
Fiscal year2026Penalty year
Every Tennessee hospital in the programs
Penalized hospitals first. Click a column to sort.
| Hospital | HAC penalty | Readmissions above expected | VBP score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cookeville Regional Med CenterCookeville | 1% cut | 6 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.19 | 22.9 |
| Baptist Memorial HospitalMemphis | 1% cut | 5 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.32 | 22.8 |
| Harton Regional Medical CenterTullahoma | 1% cut | 3 of 4Highest: COPD 1.02 | 24.5 |
| Johnson City Medical CenterJohnson City | 1% cut | 3 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.29 | 9.4 |
| Sweetwater Hospital AssociationSweetwater | 1% cut | 3 of 3Highest: COPD 1.10 | 11.6 |
| Sycamore Shoals HospitalElizabethton | 1% cut | 3 of 4Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.20 | 15.8 |
| Livingston Regional HospitalLivingston | 1% cut | 2 of 3Highest: Pneumonia 1.11 | 22.3 |
| Saint Francis Bartlett Medical CenterBartlett | 1% cut | 2 of 4Highest: Heart failure 1.11 | – |
| Crockett HospitalLeoma | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.01 | 36 |
| Vanderbilt Bedford HospitalShelbyville | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: COPD 1.01 | 42.8 |
| Volunteer Community HospitalMartin | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: COPD 1.01 | 6.7 |
| Wellmont Holston Vly Med CtrKingsport | 1% cut | 1 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.05 | 11.3 |
| Haywood County Community HospitalBrownsville | 1% cut | – | – |
| The Center for Spinal SurgeryNashville | 1% cut | – | – |
| Vanderbilt University HospitalNashville | 1% cut | 0 of 6 | 29 |
| Fort Sanders Reg Medical CtrKnoxville | No | 5 of 6Highest: COPD 1.14 | 25.2 |
| Maury Regional HospitalColumbia | No | 5 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.13 | 25.7 |
| Methodist Med Ctr of Oak RidgeOak Ridge | No | 4 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.14 | 35.8 |
| Skyline Medical CenterNashville | No | 4 of 4Highest: Heart attack 1.05 | 16.4 |
| St Francis HospitalMemphis | No | 4 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.12 | 19.9 |
| Stonecrest Medical CenterSmyrna | No | 4 of 5Highest: Pneumonia 1.08 | 27.2 |
| Wellmont Bristol Regional Medical CenterBristol | No | 4 of 6Highest: Heart failure 1.15 | 13.8 |
| Baptist Memorial Hospital TiptonCovington | No | 3 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.03 | 39.7 |
| Cleveland Community HospitalCleveland | No | 3 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.31 | 6.6 |
| Fort Sanders Loudon Med CenterLoudon | No | 3 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.03 | 22.4 |
| Greeneville Community HospitalGreeneville | No | 3 of 3Highest: Pneumonia 1.10 | 21 |
| Horizon Medical CenterDickson | No | 3 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.02 | 36 |
| Methodist Healthcare-MemphisMemphis | No | 3 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.04 | – |
| Morristown-Hamblen HospitalMorristown | No | 3 of 4Highest: Heart failure 1.13 | 23.5 |
| Parkridge Medical CenterChattanooga | No | 3 of 6Highest: Pneumonia 1.05 | 30.3 |
| Parkwest Medical CenterKnoxville | No | 3 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.23 | 23.3 |
| Physicians Regional Medical CenterKnoxville | No | 3 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.33 | 25.2 |
| Roane Medical CenterHarriman | No | 3 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.08 | 50.3 |
| Saint Thomas Rutherford HospitalMurfreesboro | No | 3 of 6Highest: Heart attack 1.04 | – |
| Summit Medical CenterHermitage | No | 3 of 5Highest: COPD 1.10 | 31.5 |
| Tristar Northcrest Medical CenterSpringfield | No | 3 of 4Highest: Pneumonia 1.08 | 43.1 |
| Univ of Tn Mem HospitalKnoxville | No | 3 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.18 | 26.3 |
| Vanderbilt Clarksville HospitalClarksville | No | 3 of 4Highest: Pneumonia 1.15 | 14.8 |
| Blount Memorial HospitalMaryville | No | 2 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.09 | 22.2 |
| Centennial Medical CenterNashville | No | 2 of 6Highest: Pneumonia 1.03 | 27.9 |
| Claiborne County HospitalTazewell | No | 2 of 2Highest: Heart failure 1.11 | 42.3 |
| Cumberland Medical CenterCrossville | No | 2 of 5Highest: Heart failure 1.03 | 28.5 |
| Dyersburg Regional Medical CenterDyersburg | No | 2 of 3Highest: COPD 1.03 | 31.7 |
| Hardin County General HospitalSavannah | No | 2 of 2Highest: Pneumonia 1.02 | 18 |
| Hendersonville Medical CenterHendersonville | No | 2 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.06 | 31.5 |
| Jackson-Madison Cnty Gen HospJackson | No | 2 of 5Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.03 | 20.6 |
| Memorial Healthcare System, INCChattanooga | No | 2 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.17 | 28.9 |
| St Mary's Jefferson Memorial HospitalJefferson City | No | 2 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.09 | 29.4 |
| St Thomas HospitalNashville | No | 2 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.07 | – |
| Sumner Regional Medical CenterGallatin | No | 2 of 4Highest: Heart attack 1.08 | 26.3 |
| Baptist Memorial Hospital HuntingdonHuntingdon | No | 1 of 2Highest: Pneumonia 1.08 | 41.8 |
| Erlanger Medical CenterChattanooga | No | 1 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.00 | 21.7 |
| Franklin Woods Community HospitalJohnson City | No | 1 of 3Highest: Pneumonia 1.01 | 19.3 |
| Henry County Medical CenterParis | No | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.02 | 17.4 |
| Indian Path Medical CenterKingsport | No | 1 of 1Highest: Pneumonia 1.08 | 47 |
| Lincoln County Hlth FacilitiesFayetteville | No | 1 of 2Highest: Heart failure 1.02 | 27.5 |
| River Park HospitalMcMinnville | No | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.04 | – |
| Saint Thomas Highlands HospitalSparta | No | 1 of 2Highest: COPD 1.02 | – |
| Southern Hills Medical CtrNashville | No | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.03 | 19.7 |
| Stones River Hospital & Dekalb Community HospitalWoodbury | No | 1 of 1Highest: Pneumonia 1.02 | – |
| Unity Medical CenterManchester | No | 1 of 2Highest: COPD 1.06 | 32 |
| Vanderbilt Wilson County HospitalLebanon | No | 1 of 5Highest: Pneumonia 1.07 | 37.8 |
| Athens Regional Medical CenterAthens | No | 0 of 3 | 34.6 |
| Baptist Memorial Hospital Union CityUnion City | No | 0 of 3 | 21 |
| Delta Medical CenterMemphis | No | – | – |
| Henderson County Community HospitalLexington | No | – | – |
| Lafollette Medical CenterLa Follette | No | 0 of 2 | 31 |
| Leconte Medical CenterSevierville | No | 0 of 3 | 43.7 |
| Metro Nashville General HospitalNashville | No | – | – |
| Milan General HospitalMilan | No | 0 of 1 | – |
| Regional One HealthMemphis | No | – | 17.4 |
| Southern Tennessee Medical CenterWinchester | No | 0 of 5 | 21.3 |
| Southern Tennessee Regional Health System PulaskiPulaski | No | 0 of 3 | 20 |
| Stones River Hospital and Dekalb Community HospSmithville | No | 0 of 1 | – |
| Tennova Healthcare - Newport Medical CenterNewport | No | 0 of 3 | 50.7 |
| Trustpoint HospitalMurfreesboro | No | – | – |
| Wellmont Hawkins County Memorial HospitalRogersville | No | 0 of 1 | – |
| Williamson Medical CenterFranklin | No | 0 of 5 | 31.8 |
Questions
Which Tennessee hospitals does Medicare penalize for patient safety?
15 of 78 Tennessee hospitals in the program (19%, vs 24% nationally) have their Medicare payments cut 1% in fiscal year 2026: Cookeville Regional Med Center, Baptist Memorial Hospital, Harton Regional Medical Center, Johnson City Medical Center, Sweetwater Hospital Association, Sycamore Shoals Hospital, Livingston Regional Hospital, Saint Francis Bartlett Medical Center, Crockett Hospital, Vanderbilt Bedford Hospital, Volunteer Community Hospital, Wellmont Holston Vly Med Ctr and 3 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 Tennessee, 59 of 71 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.