Washington hospital Medicare penalties
Which Washington hospitals Medicare is penalizing for infections and patient-safety problems in fiscal year 2026, and which had more readmissions than expected.
Safety penalty (HAC)12 of 4626% · U.S. 24%
Excess readmissions32 of 45Above expected on 1+ condition
In the programs46Washington hospitals
Fiscal year2026Penalty year
Every Washington hospital in the programs
Penalized hospitals first. Click a column to sort.
| Hospital | HAC penalty | Readmissions above expected | VBP score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Skagit Valley HospitalMt Vernon | 1% cut | 4 of 5Highest: Heart attack 1.03 | 31.7 |
| University of Washington Medical CtrSeattle | 1% cut | 4 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.08 | 28 |
| Legacy Salmon Creek Medical CenterVancouver | 1% cut | 3 of 5Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.14 | 43.4 |
| Tacoma General HospitalTacoma | 1% cut | 3 of 6Highest: Heart bypass surgery 1.15 | 21.4 |
| Harborview Medical CenterSeattle | 1% cut | 2 of 4Highest: Heart attack 1.01 | 17.4 |
| Overlake Hospital Medical CenterBellevue | 1% cut | 2 of 6Highest: Pneumonia 1.15 | 26.8 |
| Samaritan HospitalMoses Lake | 1% cut | 1 of 3Highest: Heart failure 1.01 | 42 |
| Toppenish Community HospitalToppenish | 1% cut | 1 of 1Highest: Pneumonia 1.00 | – |
| Valley Medical CenterRenton | 1% cut | 1 of 4Highest: COPD 1.01 | 24.3 |
| Cascade Valley HospitalArlington | 1% cut | 0 of 2 | 35.5 |
| Multicare Covington Medical CenterCovington | 1% cut | 0 of 3 | 36.8 |
| Providence Holy Family HospitalSpokane | 1% cut | 0 of 3 | 26.7 |
| Providence St Peter HospitalOlympia | No | 4 of 6Highest: Heart attack 1.09 | 38.2 |
| Capital Medical CenterOlympia | No | 3 of 5Highest: Heart failure 1.15 | 35.6 |
| Grays Harbor Community HospitalAberdeen | No | 3 of 5Highest: Pneumonia 1.01 | 25.2 |
| S W Washington Medical CenterVancouver | No | 3 of 6Highest: Pneumonia 1.04 | 36 |
| Auburn Regional Medical CenterAuburn | No | 2 of 5Highest: COPD 1.05 | 20 |
| Deaconess Medical CenterSpokane | No | 2 of 6Highest: Heart attack 1.03 | 22.4 |
| Olympic Medical CenterPort Angeles | No | 2 of 3Highest: COPD 1.02 | 42.6 |
| Swedish Edmonds HospitalEdmonds | No | 2 of 4Highest: COPD 1.04 | 21.6 |
| Trios HealthKennewick | No | 2 of 5Highest: Heart attack 1.09 | 26.1 |
| Confluence Health HospitalWenatchee | No | 1 of 6Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.04 | 42.6 |
| Evergreenhealth Medical CenterKirkland | No | 1 of 5Highest: COPD 1.00 | 37 |
| Good Samaritan Hospital & Rehab CenterPuyallup | No | 1 of 5Highest: COPD 1.11 | 21.8 |
| Highline Medical CenterBurien | No | 1 of 4Highest: COPD 1.04 | 39 |
| Island HospitalAnacortes | No | 1 of 3Highest: Hip or knee replacement 1.05 | 52.3 |
| Providence Centralia HospitalCentralia | No | 1 of 5Highest: Heart failure 1.03 | 35.9 |
| St Anthony HospitalGig Harbor | No | 1 of 4Highest: COPD 1.01 | 47.6 |
| St Francis Community HospitalFederal Way | No | 1 of 4Highest: Heart attack 1.03 | 26.5 |
| St Joseph Medical CenterTacoma | No | 1 of 5Highest: COPD 1.06 | – |
| St Michael Medical CenterBremerton | No | 1 of 6Highest: COPD 1.04 | 34.2 |
| Swedish IssaquahIssaquah | No | 1 of 4Highest: COPD 1.01 | 30.1 |
| Swedish Medical Center/Cherry HillSeattle | No | 1 of 4Highest: Pneumonia 1.02 | 24.8 |
| Virginia Mason Medical CenterSeattle | No | 1 of 6Highest: Pneumonia 1.04 | 41.2 |
| Yakima Valley Memorial HospitalYakima | No | 1 of 5Highest: COPD 1.01 | 22.8 |
| Evergreenhealth MonroeMonroe | No | 0 of 2 | 38 |
| Group Health Central HospitalSeattle | No | – | – |
| Kadlec Regional Medical CenterRichland | No | 0 of 6 | 22.9 |
| Peacehealth St Joseph Medical CenterBellingham | No | 0 of 6 | 28.4 |
| Peachealth St John Medical CenterLongview | No | 0 of 5 | 49 |
| Providence Regional Medical Center EverettEverett | No | 0 of 6 | 30.3 |
| Providence Sacred Heart Medical CenterSpokane | No | 0 of 6 | 17.9 |
| Providence St Mary Medical CenterWalla Walla | No | 0 of 5 | 25.8 |
| St Clare HospitalLakewood | No | 0 of 4 | 34.8 |
| Swedish Medical CenterSeattle | No | 0 of 4 | 24.3 |
| Valley Hospital & Medical CenterSpokane | No | 0 of 4 | 38.3 |
Questions
Which Washington hospitals does Medicare penalize for patient safety?
12 of 46 Washington hospitals in the program (26%, vs 24% nationally) have their Medicare payments cut 1% in fiscal year 2026: Skagit Valley Hospital, University of Washington Medical Ctr, Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center, Tacoma General Hospital, Harborview Medical Center, Overlake Hospital Medical Center, Samaritan Hospital, Toppenish Community Hospital, Valley Medical Center, Cascade Valley Hospital, Multicare Covington Medical Center, Providence Holy Family 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 Washington, 32 of 45 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.