Medicare calculates quality ratings for home health agencies using data from the Outcome and Assessment Information Set (OASIS) assessments and Medicare claims. These ratings are designed to reflect the overall performance of home health agencies and are not limited to services provided to senior housing residents.

Quality ratings compare home health agencies based on key performance measures. These include metrics such as how often the agency initiated a patient’s care in a timely manner or how often patients showed improvement in mobility, such as walking. A rating of 3 to 3.5 stars indicates that the agency performed similarly to most other agencies.

These star ratings differ from consumer ratings commonly seen on websites for products, restaurants, or hotels, which represent averages of user opinions. Instead, CMS star ratings rank agencies on a comparative scale from lowest to highest performance. As a result, some agencies may receive lower rankings even when providing good quality care.

Not all home health agencies will have star ratings available, as the availability depends on data sufficiency and participation. For more detailed information about the rating methodology, visit the official CMS page: CMS Home Health Star Ratings.