Policy & oversight
Hospices That Missed Medicare Quality Reporting Rules Have Until September 4 to Challenge the Finding
CMS placed noncompliance notices in provider accounts on August 5 for hospices that did not submit required 2025 quality data. Those that do not seek reconsideration by September 4 will face a payment penalty starting October 1.
By the Goodsurance editorial teamAugust 29, 2026
CMS placed noncompliance notifications on August 5, 2026 in the reporting accounts of hospice providers that did not satisfy Medicare Hospice Quality Reporting Program requirements for calendar year 2025. The determination carries a financial consequence: those hospices will receive a payment update of negative 1.7 percent beginning in fiscal year 2027, which starts October 1, 2026.
Compliant hospices receive a positive 2.3 percent payment update for the same period. The gap exists because federal rules impose a 4-percentage-point reduction to the annual payment update for hospices that fail to meet quality reporting obligations. For fiscal year 2027, that arithmetic produces a net payment change of negative 1.7 percent for noncompliant providers.
Hospices that missed Medicare quality reporting deadlines have until September 4 to challenge the finding. Otherwise, a payment cut takes effect October 1.
Hospices that received a noncompliance notice may submit a formal reconsideration request to CMS by 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on September 4, 2026. After that date, the window closes.
The Hospice Quality Reporting Program requires providers to submit standardized patient assessment data and clinical measures so that Medicare can monitor care quality across the country. Those submissions also feed public-facing quality information that families and caregivers can consult when selecting end-of-life care.
Beneficiaries researching hospice providers can access reported quality data on Medicare.gov, regardless of whether a specific provider received a noncompliance notice this cycle.
In plain words
Medicare requires hospice companies to file data about the care they provide. Some hospices did not follow those rules in 2025. CMS sent notices to those hospices on August 5, 2026. If they do not fix the problem, their Medicare payments will go down starting October 1. Instead of getting a 2.3 percent raise, they will face a 1.7 percent cut. Hospices that got a notice have until September 4 to ask CMS to review the decision. Families picking a hospice can look up quality information at Medicare.gov.
Understand the basics first
Source: CMS
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