How we turn CMS data into clear facility profiles
Every figure on SeniorCareRating.com comes from the official CMS Provider Data Catalog (Care Compare). We organize it — we do not editorialize beyond what the source supports.
What we use
Overall, health inspection, staffing, and quality-measure ratings — shown verbatim from CMS Care Compare.
What inspectors found, with the CMS severity letter (A–L), dates, and status. We keep short codes, never long narrative text.
The CMS staffing star rating, shown as reported.
CMS care indicators for long-stay residents: antipsychotic medication, pressure ulcers, and falls with major injury (averaged over the year).
Total fines (CMPs) and payment-denial records CMS reports in the recent lookback window.
CMS-reported chain name and ownership fields, grouped conservatively across 2+ facilities.
How we organize the data
We report CMS-reported facts. We do not add our own rating, score, ranking, or opinion. The CMS star ratings are always shown as CMS publishes them.
Listing pages (county and ownership pages) show the most relevant CMS records first so longer lists are easier to scan. That ordering uses CMS-reported fields (such as the CMS overall rating and federal penalty records) — it is a sort order, not a judgment about any facility, owner, or chain.
Missing data is shown as missing — never treated as a result. Where CMS does not report a value, the page says so rather than implying anything.
How we judge severity
CMS grades each inspection finding from A to L. We count G–L as “more serious” (actual harm or immediate danger). The full inspection reports stay at CMS.
Ownership & chain grouping
We prefer CMS’s own chain identifiers, grouping facilities only where records show a shared organization across 2+ facilities. Association does not by itself imply any wrongdoing by an owner.
Limitations
- Data can lag current conditions at a facility.
- Ownership data is complex and can be incomplete.
- Missing data is shown as missing — never as a result.
- This is not medical, legal, or care-placement advice.
- Always verify with official CMS records and qualified professionals.
- We report CMS-reported facts and do not add our own rating or opinion.