Care Compare Public Reporting

Care Compare is the consumer-facing tool on Medicare.gov where CMS publishes hospice quality data, including CAHPS star ratings, assessment-based quality measures, and claims-based measures. It is what patients, families, and referral partners see when they look up a hospice online. Beginning with the FY2027 final rule, CMS is also adding a non-compliance icon and publishing SSVI scores on the CMS Hospice Center webpage.

Hospice quality data is publicly reported on the Care Compare tool at Medicare.gov, updated on a quarterly basis ^[1]. The data posted includes three categories. First, assessment-based quality measures drawn from hospice-submitted data — historically from the Hospice Item Set (HIS) and, beginning with CY2026 data, from the Hospice Outcomes and Patient Evaluation (HOPE) instrument. CMS expects to begin HOPE-based public reporting in November 2027, pending analysis of CY2026 data quality (CMS FY2027 proposed rule CHAP summary)^[2]. Second, CAHPS Hospice Survey measures and star ratings, calculated from bereaved family survey data spanning the most recent eight quarters. Third, claims-based measures drawn from Medicare claims data, covering the most recent eight quarters of claims.

Alongside quality data, Care Compare publishes organizational characteristics from the Hospice Provider Utilization and Payment Public Use File and the Post-Acute Care PUF, including ownership type, size, and geographic information. Providers receive a preview period of at least 30 days via the CASPER application (for HIS/CAHPS measures) or iQIES (for HOPE measures) before each quarterly refresh, during which they can review their scores before publication.

The FY2027 final rule (CMS-1851-F, July 30, 2026) finalized two additions to public reporting. First, CMS will add a non-compliance icon to the Medicare.gov Care Compare tool identifying hospices that fail to submit any HOPE data or submit less than the required 90% of assessments within 30 days of the patient's admission or discharge date; this icon would appear no earlier than FY2028 and be updated annually (CMS FY2027 proposed rule fact sheet)^[3]. Second, provider-level SSVI scores — including the non-hospice spending sub-score, utilization sub-score, and total score — are published on the CMS Hospice Center webpage, with FY2024 and FY2025 data already posted (CMS FY2027 final rule fact sheet)^[4].

Care Compare is becoming a composite transparency platform that surfaces quality scores, SSVI scores, and HQRP compliance status in one publicly accessible location. Referral partners, prospective buyers, and families all have access to the same data, and the addition of the SSVI and the non-compliance icon means metrics that were previously visible only to CMS are now public signals. A hospice that fails HQRP reporting will carry a visible icon next to its name; one with a high SSVI score will have that number on the CMS Hospice Center page. Each quarterly Care Compare refresh is effectively a reputation event. The preview window of at least 30 days in CASPER or iQIES precedes each quarterly Care Compare refresh, during which providers can identify discrepancies or contextualize metrics before they become publicly visible to referral partners and surveyors.