So far in 2026, Becker’s has covered four hospitals that were hit with an immediate jeopardy warning.
An immediate jeopardy is a rare, serious situation for healthcare facilities, as it requires immediate corrective action and carries the risk of losing a Medicare contract.
1. CMS told Becker’s it was aware of a reported patient death by suicide at Mission Hospital in Asheville, N.C., part of Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare, which in January was placed in immediate jeopardy for the fourth time since 2019. On May 21, a patient under an involuntary commitment order died by suicide inside the hospital’s emergency room “Red Pod,” a unit with trauma bays for critical patients that can also serve psychiatric patients, after the individual was brought in by law enforcement. The incident comes months after regulators cited the facility for multiple patient care and safety deficiencies during a January CMS survey. The agency’s findings included deficiencies tied to two patient deaths, failures to properly isolate infectious diseases and concerns about staffing levels in the hospital’s behavioral health units. Mission Hospital submitted an enhanced plan of correction after the survey concluded Jan. 9. CMS accepted the revised plan Feb. 2. Federal regulators lifted the immediate jeopardy status at Mission Hospital, CEO Greg Lowe said in a March 4 memo to staff. While the immediate jeopardy status was lifted, the hospital has been under enhanced monitoring since January.
2. In January 2024, CMS placed Modesto, Calif.-based Memorial Medical Center in immediate jeopardy after a medication error, which involved a patient receiving 25 tablets of nitroglycerine while the normal dosage is one 0.4-milligram tablet every five minutes and a maximum of three in 15 minutes. Memorial Medical Center submitted a plan of correction, which CMS approved and resolved the immediate jeopardy. In 2025, California fined the hospital about $74,000 for three penalties, including a $42,750 administrative penalty for a medication error that beget an immediate jeopardy.
3. CMS placed Hickory, N.C.-based Frye Regional Medical Center — part of Brentwood, Tenn.-based Duke LifePoint Healthcare — under immediate jeopardy Jan. 23. The warning came after the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services’ Division of Health Service Regulation conducted a complaint investigation on behalf of CMS from Jan. 20-23. Deficiencies associated with the immediate jeopardy status were unrelated to the complaints that led to the initial investigation. According to the report, staff at the hospital did not provide effective infection prevention and control and did not meet the needs of a behavioral health patient in the emergency department. The hospital also failed to have a nursing service providing operational oversight in the emergency department. After being put under immediate jeopardy, the hospital developed and implemented a corrective action plan. The Department of Health Service Regulation conducted a follow-up visit March 12 during which no deficiencies were identified, the health department statement said. Fyre Regional was notified April 17 that the immediate jeopardy status had been lifted by CMS.
4. Children’s Hospital Colorado, Colorado Springs received and resolved an immediate jeopardy warning in 48 hours after experiencing a graywater leak in the milk and formula lab. On Jan. 15, a plumber was paged to the milk lab storage area due to water pouring into the lab. The water was coming from a clogged sewage line that led to overflow. The plumber fixed the issue, but state inspectors said staff reported still smelling raw sewage in the room. Staff were given fans to mitigate the smell, but they raised concerns that the fans would spread bacteria while milk and formula were being prepared. A terminal clean was completed on Jan. 15, but on Jan. 17, a supervisor said there were still streaks on the walls and white powder covering flat surfaces. The state investigators received two complaints about the issue and opened their investigation on Jan. 20. That same day, they issued an immediate jeopardy warning after finding the hospital failed to implement appropriate infection control measures. The hospital submitted a correction plan and resolved the issue. The immediate jeopardy warning was removed Jan. 22.
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