Hospital record · FY2026CCN 050194

1Hospital

Watsonville Community Hospital

2Location

Watsonville, CA (California’s hospitals on the map and in the table) 95076

Santa Cruz County

3Type

Not a teaching hospital · 106 beds · For-profit · Urban

4Care Compare stars

2 of 5 stars

Overall rating, CMS Care Compare data of July 22, 2026
Open on Care Compare (opens in a new tab)

5Total HAC Score

0.4576

As CMS reports it

6Payment reduction

1% cut

CMS’s value: Yes

7Estimated cut

$162K estimate

Likely $123⁠–⁠204K; about $175 per traditional Medicare stay

Cut 1%

$162K

cut from its FY2026 Medicare inpatient payments, this site estimates estimate

For fiscal year 2026, CMS reports a Total HAC Score of 0.4576 for Watsonville Community Hospital and a payment reduction decision of Yes.

That is 1% of about $16.2M, this site’s estimate of what traditional Medicare pays it for inpatient stays in a year: about $175 per traditional Medicare stay.

Likely range $123–204K

Its score was above CMS’s line, so CMS cut its Medicare inpatient payments by 1% for the year. The score compares hospitals with each other; it is not a grade of the quality of care.

CMS cut scores of 0.3799 and above.

Each year CMS cuts the hospitals with the highest quarter of scores, those above the 75th percentile, so the line moves with other hospitals’ scores.

Higher than 78% of the other 2,928 scores CMS published (higher is worse).

Its record, fiscal years 2015 to 2026 Cut in 3 of 11 years

15No
16No
17No
18No
19No
20No
21No
22Cut
23—
24Cut
25No
26Cut

Where the score came from

CMS scored this hospital on 5 of the 6 measures. On every measure a lower value is better. Each row puts the hospital among every hospital with a value: the gray columns are those hospitals, the tall tick is the national median, and the hatched ends score the same as CMS’s floor or cap.

Bringing CDI down to the national median (0.346) would lower the score the most: by 0.4631, to −0.0055. That change alone would put the score under CMS’s line. Try it in the what-if

Figure 1. Of its 5 measures with a value, this hospital is above the national median on 3; CDI added the most to its score.

This hospital
National median
Scores the same as CMS’s floor or cap

PSI 90 (what it counts)
Safety problems such as serious bedsores, falls that break a bone and blood clots after surgery, found by CMS in traditional Medicare claims. A value of 1 matches the national composite value.
Patient safety and adverse events composite
Better than 76% of the other 2,808 hospitals
estimate

This site recomputes this measure’s z‑score from CMS’s published value. The recompute can differ from CMS’s z‑score by up to 0.0021. How this site estimates

CMS value0.8850

Z-score−0.7223

Part of score−0.1445
CLABSI (what it counts)
Bloodstream infections tied to a central line, a tube often placed in a large vein in the neck, chest or groin. Hospitals report them to the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network. A value of 1.0 means as many infections as the CDC’s model predicted.
Central line–associated bloodstream infections
Better than 86% of the other 2,181 hospitals

CMS value0.000

Z-score−1.4065

Part of score−0.2813
CAUTI (what it counts)
Urinary tract infections that start from a urinary catheter, a tube that drains the bladder. Hospitals report them to the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network. A value of 1.0 means as many infections as the CDC’s model predicted.
Catheter-associated urinary tract infections
Worse than 94% of the other 2,354 hospitals

CMS value1.442

Z-score2.1573

Part of score+0.4315
SSI (what it counts)
Deep infections at the site of colon surgery or an abdominal hysterectomy, within a month of the operation, pooled into one measure. Hospitals report them to the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network. A value of 1.0 means as many infections as the CDC’s model predicted.
Surgical site infections after colon surgery or abdominal hysterectomy
Worse than 56% of the other 2,269 hospitals

CMS value0.889

Z-score0.0664

Part of score+0.0133
CDI (what it counts)
C. diff infections, which cause diarrhea and inflammation of the colon, found by a lab test and starting in the hospital. Hospitals report them to the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network. A value of 1.0 means as many infections as the CDC’s model predicted.
added the most
Clostridioides difficile (C. diff) infections
Worse than 97% of the other 2,766 hospitals
estimate

This site recomputes this measure’s z‑score from CMS’s published value. The recompute can differ from CMS’s z‑score by up to 0.0071. How this site estimates

CMS value1.192

Z-score2.1931

Part of score+0.4386
MRSA (what it counts)
Bloodstream infections with MRSA, a germ that resists several antibiotics, found by a lab test and starting in the hospital. Hospitals report them to the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network. A value of 1.0 means as many infections as the CDC’s model predicted.
MRSA bloodstream infections
Not scored on this measure
CMS footnote 13: Results cannot be calculated for this reporting period.
CMS footnote 5: Results are not available for this reporting period.

CMS valueno value published

Z-scoreno value published

Part of scoreno value published

Source: CMS Provider Data Catalog, HACRP FY2026 (yq43-i98g), released August 13, 2026.

Show table

Measure	CMS value	National median	Z-score	Part of the score	Among hospitals
PSI 90	0.8850	0.9623	−0.7223	−0.1445	Better than 76% of the other 2,808 hospitals
CLABSI	0.000	0.559	−1.4065	−0.2813	Better than 86% of the other 2,181 hospitals
CAUTI	1.442	0.489	2.1573	+0.4315	Worse than 94% of the other 2,354 hospitals
SSI	0.889	0.795	0.0664	+0.0133	Worse than 56% of the other 2,269 hospitals
CDI	1.192	0.346	2.1931	+0.4386	Worse than 97% of the other 2,766 hospitals
MRSA	no value published	0.641	no value published	no value published	Not scored on this measure

How the parts add up

CMS adds the z‑scores and divides by the number of measures scored, so each measure counts the same. Each bar below is one z‑score divided by 5; a bar right of zero raised the score and one left of zero lowered it.

(−0.7223PSI 90−1.4065CLABSI+2.1573CAUTI+0.0664SSI+2.1931CDI)÷5measures=0.4576Total HAC Score

This hospital’s score is 0.0784 above 0.3792, the highest score CMS marked No. (This site recomputes.)

Figure 2. The parts add up to 0.4576, above CMS’s line.

This site recomputes · Source: CMS Provider Data Catalog, HACRP FY2026 (yq43-i98g), released August 13, 2026.

Show table

Measure	Z-score	Part of the score	Running total
PSI 90	−0.7223	−0.1445	−0.1445
CLABSI	−1.4065	−0.2813	−0.4258
CAUTI	2.1573	+0.4315	0.0057
SSI	0.0664	+0.0133	0.0190
CDI	2.1931	+0.4386	0.4576
Total HAC Score			0.4576
CMS’s line		0.3792	0.3799

The money is a cliff

This program’s cut doesn’t grow with the score. Over CMS’s line, CMS cuts 1% of what traditional Medicare pays a hospital for inpatient stays that year; at or under the line, this program cuts nothing.

The chart draws what the cut would be for this hospital at any Total HAC Score, from this site’s estimate of its payments, with its own score marked.

Figure 3. The cut is a cliff, not a slope: this hospital’s score, 0.0784 over the highest score CMS didn’t cut, costs it about $162K by this site’s estimate, and at CMS’s highest score, 2.3133, the cut would be the same.

Under the axis, every Total HAC Score CMS published: 306 of the 2,929 scored within 0.1 of CMS’s line, on one side or the other.

Estimate · Source: this site’s arithmetic on CMS’s FY2026 IPPS final rule files (the impact file, the rate tables and the value-based factors), its FY2026 HRRP supplemental file and HACRP FY2026 (yq43-i98g), released August 13, 2026.

Show table

Score	Total HAC Score	Estimated HAC cut (whole dollars)
Any score up to 0.3792	0.3792	$0
Any score from 0.3799	0.3799	−$162,056
This hospital	0.4576	−$162,056
CMS’s highest score	2.3133	−$162,056

The money, line by line

This site estimates what traditional Medicare pays the hospital for a year of inpatient stays, from CMS’s FY2026 payment files, then applies Medicare’s three hospital quality programs: the readmissions and value-based adjustments to the base payment, and the HAC cut last, as the law sets.

The readmissions and value-based programs adjust only the base payment: the DRG rates times the hospital’s cases, and a Medicare-dependent hospital’s add-on. The HAC cut comes last and takes 1% of everything left, teaching, low-income-patient, outlier, capital and uncompensated care payments included.

($16,225,369payment−$30,788readmissions+$11,038value-based)×1%the cut=$162,056HAC cut

$162,056HAC cut÷925traditional Medicare stays=$175per traditional Medicare stay

Figure 4. This site estimates the HAC cut at $162K: 1% of the hospital’s whole inpatient payment, taken last. The readmissions and value-based adjustments, on the base alone, came to −$31K and +$11K.

Estimated Medicare inpatient payments · FY2026 estimate

What traditional Medicare pays it for inpatient stays
DRG payments at the federal rates the base	$12,828,428
Many low-income patients (disproportionate share)	$1,268,860
Outliers: unusually costly stays	$722,369
Capital: buildings and equipment	$1,112,613
Uncompensated care	$293,099
Total, before the three programs	$16,225,369
The three programs: two on the base, the HAC cut last
Readmissions (HRRP) base × (0.9976 − 1)	−$30,788
Value-based purchasing (HVBP) base × (1.0009 − 1)	+$11,038
After these two	$16,205,619
HAC Reduction Program 1% of everything above; likely $123⁠–⁠204K	−$162,056
Net of the three programs likely −$214K to −$146K	−$181,806

Not paid to this hospital: a Medicare-dependent hospital add-on, teaching payments, a sole community hospital rate difference, and a low-volume adjustment.

Whole dollars, so every line adds up; the estimate is not that precise. Each likely range spans the middle 80% of the misses this site’s estimate made for similar hospitals (or for a wider group, where there were too few) when it was checked against their FY2024 cost reports: one year’s check, not a promise of how often a hospital’s actual figure lands inside.

Show table

Line	Amount (whole dollars)
DRG payments at the federal rates (the base)	$12,828,428
Many low-income patients (disproportionate share)	$1,268,860
Outliers: unusually costly stays	$722,369
Capital: buildings and equipment	$1,112,613
Uncompensated care	$293,099
Total, before the three programs	$16,225,369
Readmissions (HRRP) (base × (0.9976 − 1))	−$30,788
Value-based purchasing (HVBP) (base × (1.0009 − 1))	+$11,038
After these two	$16,205,619
HAC Reduction Program (1% of everything above; likely $123–204K)	−$162,056
Net of the three programs (likely −$214K to −$146K)	−$181,806

What if a measure were different?

Change a measure’s value to see how this site recomputes the Total HAC Score, the payment reduction decision and, by its estimate, the money, starting from CMS’s values. The money doesn’t slide with the score: it drops off a cliff at CMS’s line.

The what-if needs JavaScript. Without it, the values below stay as they are.

Show table

	CMS reports	Hypothetical
Total HAC Score	0.4576	same
Payment reduction decision	Yes	same
Payment cut	1%	same
Estimated HAC cut estimate	$162K	same

CMS’s line: between 0.3792 and 0.3799

The faint ticks are CMS’s line in earlier years under the same formula, from about 0.300 (FY2022) to about 0.375 (FY2024). The line moves every year, so a hospital can cross it without changing anything.

CMS reports a Total HAC Score of 0.4576 and a payment reduction decision of Yes.

A what-if shows the formula’s arithmetic, not what a hospital could realistically change or how. CMS’s real result also depends on other hospitals.

What would it take?

Getting under CMS’s line would keep about $162K, this site estimates: the whole cut, however far under the score lands.

From CMS’s values, one measure at a time, with every other measure held at CMS’s value.

Measure	Value that would read No
PSI 90	0.8287 or lower
CLABSI	not possible with this measure alone
CAUTI	1.279 or lower
SSI	0.660 or lower
CDI	0.842 or lower

Each measure weighs 1 ÷ 5 of the score.

Measure values

SIR 1.0 = as many infections as predicted · Lower is better

On each track the tick is the national median; shaded values score the same as the floor or cap, as this site fits them to CMS’s values.

Patient safety and adverse events composite PSI 90

PSI 90 value

CMS 0.8850 · median 0.9623 · floor 0.7760 · cap 1.3482 · each 0.1 = 0.1396

Central line–associated bloodstream infections CLABSI

CLABSI value

CMS 0.000 · median 0.559 · cap 1.572 · each 0.1 = 0.0464

Catheter-associated urinary tract infections CAUTI

CAUTI value

CMS 1.442 · median 0.489 · cap 1.537 · each 0.1 = 0.0482

Surgical site infections after colon surgery or abdominal hysterectomy SSI

SSI value

CMS 0.889 · median 0.795 · cap 2.118 · each 0.1 = 0.0343

Clostridioides difficile (C. diff) infections CDI

CDI value

CMS 1.192 · median 0.346 · cap 0.944 · each 0.1 = 0.0774

Have your NHSN predicted counts? (optional, stays in your browser)

Stays in your browser; never sent.

Optional: your NHSN predicted infections for CLABSI, January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2024

Optional: your NHSN predicted infections for CAUTI, January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2024

Optional: your NHSN predicted infections for SSI, January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2024

Optional: your NHSN predicted infections for CDI, January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2024

Figure 5. CDI added the most to this hospital’s Total HAC Score of 0.4576 among its measured results: +0.4386.

PSI 90 −0.1445
CLABSI −0.2813
CAUTI +0.4315
SSI +0.0133
CDI +0.4386

A measure adds its z‑score divided by 5, the number of measures scored. Bars right of the center line raise the score. Hatched: assigned by CMS.

This site recomputes · Source: CMS Provider Data Catalog, HACRP FY2026 (yq43-i98g), released August 13, 2026.

Show table

Measure	Z-score	Part of the score	Hypothetical
PSI 90	−0.7223	−0.1445	same
CLABSI	−1.4065	−0.2813	same
CAUTI	2.1573	+0.4315	same
SSI	0.0664	+0.0133	same
CDI	2.1931	+0.4386	same

Interactive what-if at https://paidandpenalized.org/hacrp/hospital/050194/

Among hospitals with a Yes or No payment decision, CMS cut those with a published Total HAC Score of 0.3799 or higher and none at 0.3792 or lower. Maryland’s hospitals are scored but not subject to the reduction.

Held fixed: every other hospital’s results, CMS’s line, and each measure’s mean, spread, floor and cap as this site fits them to CMS’s published values.

Year by year

Where this hospital’s score fell among every hospital’s, each year CMS published one. A score near the top is among the highest; the shaded band is where CMS cut. Places compare across years even where CMS changed how it builds the score.

Figure 6. CMS cut this hospital in 3 of the 11 years it made a decision.

● Red: a year CMS cut it ○ Hollow: a year it didn’t

This site recomputes · Source: CMS, HACRP hospital files for fiscal years 2015 to 2026 (Provider Data Catalog, its archives and, for the oldest years, the Internet Archive’s copies), and CMS’s cut lists for FY2015 and FY2016.

Show table

Fiscal year	Total HAC Score	Higher than this share of scores	Payment reduction
FY2015	4.4250	33.2%	not cut
FY2016	3.2500	14.5%	not cut
FY2017	2.5300	11.6%	not cut
FY2018	−0.9083	9.6%	not cut
FY2019	−0.8026	12.2%	not cut
FY2020	−0.2789	31.9%	not cut
FY2021	−0.0516	48.1%	not cut
FY2022	1.5664	99.0%	cut
FY2023			no decision
FY2024	0.8295	89.5%	cut
FY2025	−0.3554	27.2%	not cut
FY2026	0.4576	78.5%	cut

Its infections, year by year

This hospital’s infection rate against prediction for each calendar year Care Compare published one, on each measure with at least two years of results (black), over the nation’s middle hospital (gray). Below the dashed line at one, fewer infections than predicted. Each year is measured against the same fixed baseline, not against other hospitals, so unlike the score they can all improve at once.

Figure 7. 1 of its 4 infection measures ended lower than they started.

Source: CMS Care Compare, healthcare-associated infections by hospital, calendar years 2017 to 2024 (Provider Data Catalog archives; the oldest year through the Internet Archive’s copy).

Show table

Calendar year	CLABSI	CAUTI	SSI, colon	C. diff
2017	0.000	0.837	0.924	0.643
2018	0.799	0.000	0.000	0.914
2019		1.898		1.160
2021	1.807	1.921		1.229
2022				1.219
2023				1.350
2024				1.031

Among hospitals like it

Each row is a group this hospital belongs to, drawn from every hospital in it with a payment decision. Red columns are hospitals past CMS’s line, the ones CMS cut; the short tick is the group’s middle score.

In California, its score is higher than 78% of the other 276 scored there.

Figure 8. Its score is above the middle in all 7 groups it belongs to; the share cut runs from 15% (For-profit) to 27% (California).

Source: CMS Provider Data Catalog, HACRP FY2026 (yq43-i98g), released August 13, 2026.

Show table

Group	With a decision	Hospitals cut	Share cut	Middle score	Hospital higher than
All hospitals	2,886	718	25%	−0.0453	78%
West region	593	157	26%	−0.0302	78%
California	277	76	27%	−0.0217	78%
Not teaching	1,563	389	25%	−0.1053	78%
100 to 299 beds	1,193	275	23%	−0.0732	80%
For-profit	651	98	15%	−0.2590	87%
Urban	2,241	510	23%	−0.0574	80%
This hospital				0.4576
CMS’s line				0.3792	0.3799

The nearest hospitals

The 8 closest hospitals with a Total HAC Score, in a straight line. The squares are each hospital’s measures in order: filled, above the national median; open, at or below it; hatched, assigned by CMS; blank, not scored.

Figure 9. CMS cut 3 of the 8 nearest hospitals; the closest is 11 miles away.

Source: CMS Provider Data Catalog, HACRP FY2026 (yq43-i98g), released August 13, 2026.

Show table

Hospital	Miles	Score	Decision
Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center of Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA	11	−0.3403	not cut
Dominican Hospital, Santa Cruz, CA	11	−0.0394	not cut
Natividad Medical Center, Salinas, CA	18	−0.1175	not cut
Salinas Valley Health Medical Center, Salinas, CA	20	−0.2286	not cut
Kaiser Foundation Hospital-San Jose, San Jose, CA	22	0.3870	cut
Good Samaritan Hospital, San Jose, CA	24	0.2933	not cut
Community Hospital of the Monterey Peninsula, Monterey, CA	25	0.3936	cut
Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, San Jose, CA	28	0.7741	cut

#	Hospital	Miles	Score	Decision	Est. cut ($, modeled)	Measures
1	Sutter Maternity & Surgery Center of Santa CruzSanta Cruz, CA	11	−0.3403	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 1 of 2 measures
2	Dominican HospitalSanta Cruz, CA	11	−0.0394	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 3 of 6 measures
3	Natividad Medical CenterSalinas, CA	18	−0.1175	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 3 of 6 measures
4	Salinas Valley Health Medical CenterSalinas, CA	20	−0.2286	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 3 of 6 measures
5	Kaiser Foundation Hospital-San JoseSan Jose, CA	22	0.3870	1% cut	$148K	Above the national median on 5 of 6 measures
6	Good Samaritan HospitalSan Jose, CA	24	0.2933	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 3 of 6 measures
7	Community Hospital of the Monterey PeninsulaMonterey, CA	25	0.3936	1% cut	$1.4M	Above the national median on 4 of 6 measures
8	Santa Clara Valley Medical CenterSan Jose, CA	28	0.7741	1% cut	$1.9M	Above the national median on 6 of 6 measures

Download all hospitals’ data (CSV) · Data dictionary · CMS’s dataset page

CMS’s footnotes on this page

13: Results cannot be calculated for this reporting period.
5: Results are not available for this reporting period.

How the program works, and how to find another hospital

A penalty reflects how CMS’s formula scored relative performance; it is not a verdict on the quality of care.

Cite this page

Paid & Penalized. Watsonville Community Hospital, Watsonville, CA: Hospital-Acquired Conditions, FY2026. https://paidandpenalized.org/hacrp/hospital/050194/. Source: CMS Provider Data Catalog, HACRP FY2026 (yq43-i98g), released August 13, 2026.