Nearly half of nursing homes were fined by CMS in three years

44.3% of the 14,690 nursing homes in the Medicare and Medicaid program, 6,510 homes, were fined by CMS at least once in the three years through August 2026. CMS issued 12,989 fines in that window. They total $455.0 million. The median fine is $16,039.

The money is concentrated. 1,432 homes, 9.7% of all homes, were each fined $100,000 or more. Those homes account for 64.5% of every fine dollar. The median fined home was fined once. The worst was fined 19 times.

Fines track the star rating. 77.9% of one-star homes were fined. 13.7% of five-star homes were. For-profit homes were fined at 46.9%, nonprofits at 35.9%, government homes at 40.4%. Geography matters more than ownership. Among states with 50 or more homes, Alabama fined 15.6% and Indiana 18.3%, while South Dakota fined 75.0%, Rhode Island 73.6% and Texas 68.5%.

A fined home is a home with a survey finding it has to fix, a plan of correction on file and an administrator who just lost budget. That is a buyer under pressure, and the fine date tells you when the pressure started. Pull the list for your territory before you plan the week.

Cite this: Nearly half of nursing homes were fined by CMS in three years, ProxiSuite (2026), based on CMS Nursing Home Penalties and Provider Information, Provider Data Catalog, October 2026 release. https://proxisuite.com/report/nursing-home-federal-fines.html

ProxiSuite is not endorsed by or affiliated with any government agency. Analysis based on public federal data.