Hospital record · FY2026CCN 340142

1Hospital

Carteret General Hospital

2Location

Morehead City, NC (North Carolina’s hospitals on the map and in the table) 28557

Carteret County

3Type

Not a teaching hospital · 117 beds · For-profit · Rural · Rural referral center · Sole community hospital

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

1.4007

As CMS reports it

6Payment reduction

1% cut

CMS’s value: Yes

7Estimated cut

$246K estimate

Likely $176⁠–⁠276K; about $129 per traditional Medicare stay

Cut 1%

$246K

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

For fiscal year 2026, CMS reports a Total HAC Score of 1.4007 for Carteret General Hospital and a payment reduction decision of Yes.

That is 1% of about $24.6M, this site’s estimate of what traditional Medicare pays it for inpatient stays in a year: about $129 per traditional Medicare stay.

Likely range $176–276K

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 97% of the other 2,928 scores CMS published (higher is worse).

Its record, fiscal years 2015 to 2026 Cut in 7 of 11 years

15Cut
16No
17No
18Cut
19Cut
20Cut
21Cut
22No
23—
24No
25Cut
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 0.4228, to 0.9779. Try it in the what-if

Figure 1. Of its 5 measures with a value, this hospital is above the national median on 5; 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
Worse than 80% 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 value1.0942

Z-score0.7382

Part of score+0.1476
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
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
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 88% of the other 2,354 hospitals

CMS value1.100

Z-score1.3329

Part of score+0.2666
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 86% of the other 2,269 hospitals

CMS value1.562

Z-score1.2192

Part of score+0.2438
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 93% 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 value0.892

Z-score1.9917

Part of score+0.3983
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
Worse than 91% of the other 2,067 hospitals

CMS value1.521

Z-score1.7215

Part of score+0.3443

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	1.0942	0.9623	0.7382	+0.1476	Worse than 80% of the other 2,808 hospitals
CLABSI	no value published	0.559	no value published	no value published	Not scored on this measure
CAUTI	1.100	0.489	1.3329	+0.2666	Worse than 88% of the other 2,354 hospitals
SSI	1.562	0.795	1.2192	+0.2438	Worse than 86% of the other 2,269 hospitals
CDI	0.892	0.346	1.9917	+0.3983	Worse than 93% of the other 2,766 hospitals
MRSA	1.521	0.641	1.7215	+0.3443	Worse than 91% of the other 2,067 hospitals

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.

(0.7382PSI 90+1.3329CAUTI+1.2192SSI+1.9917CDI+1.7215MRSA)÷5measures=1.4007Total HAC Score

This hospital’s score is 1.0215 above 0.3792, the highest score CMS marked No. (This site recomputes.)

Figure 2. The parts add up to 1.4007, 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	0.7382	+0.1476	0.1476
CAUTI	1.3329	+0.2666	0.4142
SSI	1.2192	+0.2438	0.6580
CDI	1.9917	+0.3983	1.0563
MRSA	1.7215	+0.3443	1.4006
Total HAC Score			1.4007
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, 1.0215 over the highest score CMS didn’t cut, costs it about $246K 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	−$246,409
This hospital	1.4007	−$246,409
CMS’s highest score	2.3133	−$246,409

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.

($24,683,487payment−$187,753readmissions+$145,142value-based)×1%the cut=$246,409HAC cut

$246,409HAC cut÷1,912traditional Medicare stays=$129per traditional Medicare stay

Figure 4. This site estimates the HAC cut at $246K: 1% of the hospital’s whole inpatient payment, taken last. The readmissions and value-based adjustments, on the base alone, came to −$188K and +$145K.

Estimated Medicare inpatient payments · FY2026 estimate

What traditional Medicare pays it for inpatient stays
DRG payments at the federal rates the base	$17,068,489
Outliers: unusually costly stays	$100,704
Sole community hospital rate difference	$6,193,104
Capital: buildings and equipment	$1,321,190
Total, before the three programs	$24,683,487
The three programs: two on the base, the HAC cut last
Readmissions (HRRP) base × (0.9890 − 1)	−$187,753
Value-based purchasing (HVBP) base × (1.0085 − 1)	+$145,142
After these two	$24,640,876
HAC Reduction Program 1% of everything above; likely $176⁠–⁠276K	−$246,409
Net of the three programs likely −$306K to −$201K	−$289,020

Not paid to this hospital: a Medicare-dependent hospital add-on, teaching payments, low-income-patient payments, a low-volume adjustment, and uncompensated care payments.

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)	$17,068,489
Outliers: unusually costly stays	$100,704
Sole community hospital rate difference	$6,193,104
Capital: buildings and equipment	$1,321,190
Total, before the three programs	$24,683,487
Readmissions (HRRP) (base × (0.9890 − 1))	−$187,753
Value-based purchasing (HVBP) (base × (1.0085 − 1))	+$145,142
After these two	$24,640,876
HAC Reduction Program (1% of everything above; likely $176–276K)	−$246,409
Net of the three programs (likely −$306K to −$201K)	−$289,020

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	1.4007	same
Payment reduction decision	Yes	same
Payment cut	1%	same
Estimated HAC cut estimate	$246K	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 1.4007 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 $246K, 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	not possible with this measure alone
CAUTI	not possible with this measure alone
SSI	not possible with this measure alone
CDI	not possible with this measure alone
MRSA	not possible with this measure alone

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 1.0942 · median 0.9623 · floor 0.7760 · cap 1.3482 · each 0.1 = 0.1396

Catheter-associated urinary tract infections CAUTI

CAUTI value

CMS 1.100 · median 0.489 · cap 1.537 · each 0.1 = 0.0482

Surgical site infections after colon surgery or abdominal hysterectomy SSI

SSI value

CMS 1.562 · median 0.795 · cap 2.118 · each 0.1 = 0.0343

Clostridioides difficile (C. diff) infections CDI

CDI value

CMS 0.892 · median 0.346 · cap 0.944 · each 0.1 = 0.0774

MRSA bloodstream infections MRSA

MRSA value

CMS 1.521 · median 0.641 · cap 1.762 · each 0.1 = 0.0418

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

Stays in your browser; never sent.

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

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

Figure 5. CDI added the most to this hospital’s Total HAC Score of 1.4007 among its measured results: +0.3983.

PSI 90 +0.1476
CAUTI +0.2666
SSI +0.2438
CDI +0.3983
MRSA +0.3443

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	0.7382	+0.1476	same
CAUTI	1.3329	+0.2666	same
SSI	1.2192	+0.2438	same
CDI	1.9917	+0.3983	same
MRSA	1.7215	+0.3443	same

Interactive what-if at https://paidandpenalized.org/hacrp/hospital/340142/

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.

Its longest run: cut 4 years in a row.

Figure 6. CMS cut this hospital in 7 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	7.6500	85.2%	cut
FY2016	6.5000	68.6%	not cut
FY2017	6.3400	71.2%	not cut
FY2018	0.4838	81.3%	cut
FY2019	0.4239	78.5%	cut
FY2020	1.2676	98.2%	cut
FY2021	0.7892	92.2%	cut
FY2022	−0.0540	48.4%	not cut
FY2023			no decision
FY2024	−0.5054	19.4%	not cut
FY2025	1.1742	96.2%	cut
FY2026	1.4007	97.6%	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. 2 of its 2 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	SSI, colon	C. diff
2017	1.510	2.161
2018	0.887	1.307
2019	0.688	0.386
2021	0.878	0.520
2022	0.647	0.353
2023	2.948	0.968
2024	0.000	0.792

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 North Carolina, its score is higher than 98% of the other 78 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 32% (Rural).

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	97%
South region	1,174	263	22%	−0.1056	97%
North Carolina	79	20	25%	0.0502	98%
Not teaching	1,563	389	25%	−0.1053	96%
100 to 299 beds	1,193	275	23%	−0.0732	98%
For-profit	651	98	15%	−0.2590	97%
Rural	619	196	32%	0.0229	95%
This hospital				1.4007
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 32 miles away.

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

Show table

Hospital	Miles	Score	Decision
Carolina East Medical Center, New Bern, NC	32	−0.3772	not cut
Onslow Memorial Hospital, Jacksonville, NC	36	0.1833	not cut
UNC Lenoir Health Care, Kinston, NC	61	0.3792	not cut
Vidant Duplin Hospital, Kenansville, NC	70	0.7830	cut
ECU Health Medical Center, Greenville, NC	71	0.0502	not cut
Novant Health New Hanover Regional Medical Center, Wilmington, NC	76	0.3485	not cut
Wilmington Treatment Center, Wilmington, NC	76	2.2091	cut
UNC Health Care Wayne, Goldsboro, NC	82	0.5234	cut

#	Hospital	Miles	Score	Decision	Est. cut ($, modeled)	Measures
1	Carolina East Medical CenterNew Bern, NC	32	−0.3772	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 2 of 6 measures
2	Onslow Memorial HospitalJacksonville, NC	36	0.1833	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 3 of 6 measures
3	UNC Lenoir Health CareKinston, NC	61	0.3792	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 4 of 6 measures
4	Vidant Duplin HospitalKenansville, NC	70	0.7830	1% cut	$76K	Above the national median on 2 of 4 measures
5	ECU Health Medical CenterGreenville, NC	71	0.0502	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 4 of 6 measures
6	Novant Health New Hanover Regional Medical CenterWilmington, NC	76	0.3485	No cut	$0	Above the national median on 5 of 6 measures
7	Wilmington Treatment CenterWilmington, NC	76	2.2091	1% cut	$30K	Above the national median on 2 of 2 measures
8	UNC Health Care WayneGoldsboro, NC	82	0.5234	1% cut	$299K	Above the national median on 4 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. Carteret General Hospital, Morehead City, NC: Hospital-Acquired Conditions, FY2026. https://paidandpenalized.org/hacrp/hospital/340142/. Source: CMS Provider Data Catalog, HACRP FY2026 (yq43-i98g), released August 13, 2026.