The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) began refreshing the nursing home Care Compare ratings Thursday after a pause following the government shutdown. 

This comes after sector advocates urged CMS to resume Care Compare updates, NHSN data reviews, and other agency activities.

Officials from LeadingAge – the largest association of nonprofit providers, which wrote to the federal agency last week to prioritize important areas including updating COVID-19 vaccination definitions, issuing respiratory illness guidance, and providing timely Care Compare and Five-Star Quality Rating updates – praised the move.

“This is good news from [CMS] following our November 13 letter seeking prioritization of important areas of concern, including timely updates to Care Compare. As we recommended to CMS, a refresh is needed as soon as possible to update Care Compare and the Five Star Quality Rating System and associated data sites rather than delaying the next quarterly refresh scheduled for January 28, 2026,” Jodi Eyigor, senior director of nursing home quality and policy at LeadingAge, said in an emailed statement to Skilled Nursing News. 

Timely data are critical to ensuring that consumers and families have accurate, up-to-date information when making care decisions, she said.

“This commitment to transparency and accuracy supports confidence in the system and helps providers and the public alike,” Eyigor said. “We applaud CMS for acting swiftly to verify data and resume updates so soon after the shutdown.”

Meanwhile, Holly Norelli, vice president of quality and regulatory services at the American Health Care Association (AHCA), said in a statement to SNN that the largest association for long-term and post-acute care providers is also calling for improvements to Care Compare.

“Between the tech updates and government shutdown, providers and consumers will appreciate having Five-Star and Care Compare back on schedule,” said Norelli. “Seniors and their families deserve accurate and timely information about nursing homes, and we’ll continue to encourage the administration to make improvements to Care Compare to support this.”