CMS certification 450855
Harlingen Medical Center
5501 South Expressway 77, Harlingen, TX 78550
Harlingen Medical Center has a CMS overall rating of 4 out of 5 stars. 77% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. Of the 21 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 5 and worse on 1. Emergency patients spend a median of 2 h 36 min in its emergency department before leaving (US median 2 h 42 min).
Every figure on this page is published by CMS; we arrange and explain it, and score nothing ourselves.
What patients said
Answers from patients who stayed here, collected by CMS in the national HCAHPS survey: 400 completed surveys, 41% response rate, Oct 2024 – Sep 2025.
Emergency department
How long emergency patients spent here and how some time-critical care went, from CMS's timely and effective care measures, Oct 2024 – Sep 2025. CMS classes this emergency department's patient volume as medium; busier departments tend to have longer times, so the national median for departments of the same volume is shown too. These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.
| Measure | This hospital | TX | US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median time in the emergency department before leaving Lower is better · 399 visits sampled · US median for EDs of the same volume: 2 h 45 min | 2 h 36 min | 2 h 25 min | 2 h 42 min |
| Median time for psychiatric and mental health patients Lower is better · 18 visits sampled | 4 h 10 min | 3 h 53 min | 4 h 17 min |
| Left before being seen Lower is better · 28,279 patients | 1% | 1% | 2% |
| Severe sepsis and septic shock: all recommended care given Higher is better · 140 patients | 49% | 68% | 65% |
How Harlingen Medical Center compares with nearby hospitals
The closest hospitals of the same kind that CMS rates or surveys - the same city first, then the same county and ZIP area. Every figure is CMS's: the overall star rating, the share of patients who would definitely recommend the hospital, the median time emergency patients spent before leaving, and how many death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS found better or worse than the national rate.
| Hospital | CMS stars | Would recommend | ER median time | Vs the nation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harlingen Medical CenterThis hospital | 4/5 | 77% | 2 h 36 min | 5 better 1 worse |
| Vhs Harlingen Hospital Company LLCSame city | 2/5 | 62% | 2 h 25 min | 3 better 2 worse |
| Valley Regional Medical CenterSame county · Brownsville | 2/5 | 65% | 2 h 56 min | 1 better 2 worse |
| Valley Baptist Medical Center- BrownsvilleSame county · Brownsville | 3/5 | 57% | 2 h 16 min | 3 better |
| Doctors Hosptal at RenaissanceSame ZIP area · Edinburg | 3/5 | 70% | 3 h 39 min | 3 better 1 worse |
| South Texas Health SystemSame ZIP area · Edinburg | 4/5 | 67% | 1 h 46 min | 4 better 1 worse |
Hospitals differ in size and in how sick their patients are. CMS adjusts its outcome measures for that, but a star or a percentage is a starting point for questions, not a verdict. All hospitals in Harlingen.
Deaths
How many patients died within 30 days of admission, adjusted by CMS for how sick they were. Lower is better. Data from Jul 2022 – Jun 2025.
| Measure | CMS comparison | This hospital | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| All patients, hospital-wide 1,837 cases | Too few cases | 3.3% | 3.9% |
| Heart attack 46 cases | Too few cases | 11.8% | 11.9% |
| Heart failure 111 cases | Too few cases | 8.8% | 11.1% |
| Pneumonia 228 cases | Too few cases | 11% | 15.2% |
| Stroke 39 cases | Too few cases | 14.6% | 11.9% |
| Heart bypass surgery (CABG) 38 cases | Too few cases | 3.7% | 2.4% |
1 more measure had too few cases here to report.
Complications
How often patients had serious complications, most of them after surgery, adjusted for how sick they were. Lower is better. Data from Jul 2022 – Jun 2024.
| Measure | CMS comparison | This hospital | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serious complications, combined measure | No different | 1.09 likely 0.69 – 1.49 | 1 |
| After hip or knee replacement 62 cases | Too few cases | 3.5% | 4.1% |
| Deaths after a serious but treatable surgical complication 25 cases | No different | 169.26 per 1,000 likely 110.73 per 1,000 – 227.79 per 1,000 | 173.3 per 1,000 |
| Pressure ulcers (bed sores) 1,415 cases | No different | 0.99 per 1,000 likely 0.08 per 1,000 – 1.91 per 1,000 | 0.63 per 1,000 |
| Collapsed lung caused by a procedure 1,783 cases | No different | 0.19 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 0.41 per 1,000 | 0.21 per 1,000 |
| Broken bones from falls in the hospital 1,835 cases | No different | 0.25 per 1,000 likely 0.04 per 1,000 – 0.46 per 1,000 | 0.27 per 1,000 |
| Bleeding or hematoma after surgery 375 cases | No different | 2.14 per 1,000 likely 0.48 per 1,000 – 3.8 per 1,000 | 2.34 per 1,000 |
| Kidney injury needing dialysis after surgery 129 cases | No different | 1.63 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 3.33 per 1,000 | 1.67 per 1,000 |
| Breathing failure after surgery 130 cases | No different | 10.84 per 1,000 likely 2.38 per 1,000 – 19.3 per 1,000 | 9.42 per 1,000 |
| Blood clots in the lungs or legs after surgery 397 cases | No different | 2.95 per 1,000 likely 0.52 per 1,000 – 5.38 per 1,000 | 3.52 per 1,000 |
| Sepsis after surgery 117 cases | No different | 4.88 per 1,000 likely 0.69 per 1,000 – 9.08 per 1,000 | 5.27 per 1,000 |
| Surgical wound splitting open 65 cases | No different | 1.73 per 1,000 likely 0.21 per 1,000 – 3.24 per 1,000 | 1.77 per 1,000 |
| Accidental cut or tear during abdominal surgery 312 cases | No different | 0.98 per 1,000 likely 0 per 1,000 – 2.03 per 1,000 | 1.06 per 1,000 |
Infections caught in the hospital
Standardized infection ratio: 1.0 means as many infections as CMS predicted for a hospital like this one. Lower is better. Data from Oct 2024 – Sep 2025.
| Measure | CMS comparison | This hospital | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bloodstream infections from central lines (CLABSI) | No different | 0.95 likely 0.24 – 2.6 | 1 |
| Urinary tract infections from catheters (CAUTI) | No different | 0.27 likely 0.01 – 1.31 | 1 |
| Surgical site infections after colon surgery | No different | 0 | 1 |
| C. diff intestinal infections | Better | 0 | 1 |
2 more measures had too few cases here to report.
Readmissions and return visits
How often patients had to come back to a hospital after going home. Lower is better. Data from Jul 2023 – Jun 2025.
| Measure | CMS comparison | This hospital | National |
|---|---|---|---|
| Readmitted after a heart attack 160 cases | Too few cases | 14.6% | 14.4% |
| Readmitted after heart failure 331 cases | Too few cases | 20.5% | 21.3% |
| Readmitted after pneumonia 574 cases | Too few cases | 16% | 17.3% |
| Readmitted after COPD 83 cases | Too few cases | 18.9% | 20% |
| Readmitted after heart bypass surgery 118 cases | Too few cases | 12.7% | 11% |
| Readmitted after hip or knee replacement 70 cases | Too few cases | 5.2% | 5.8% |
| Days back in hospital after heart failure 127 cases | Too few cases | -40.2 days per 100 | — |
| Days back in hospital after pneumonia 250 cases | Too few cases | -15 days per 100 | — |
| Unplanned visits after outpatient surgery 78 cases | No different | 1 likely 0.7 – 1.4 | — |
5 more measures had too few cases here to report.
Clinicians registered at this address
19 clinicians give this hospital's street address as their practice location in NPPES, the federal provider registry, plus 32 residents and trainees. The same address can take in offices and clinics in the building, and a listing does not prove admitting privileges or current employment.
| Specialty | Clinicians |
|---|---|
| Pharmacist | 5 |
| Emergency Medicine | 3 |
| Nurse Anesthetist, Certified Registered | 3 |
| Acute Care | 1 |
| Cytopathology | 1 |
| Dietitian, Registered | 1 |
| Family | 1 |
| Family Medicine | 1 |
| Internal Medicine | 1 |
| Radiologic Technologist | 1 |
| Surgical Technologist | 1 |
First 12 alphabetically
How to read this page
- Everything here is published by CMS on Care Compare. We arrange it and explain it; the star ratings and the better / worse verdicts are CMS's, not ours.
- “No different” is the most common result on most measures at most hospitals. CMS only calls a result better or worse when the difference from the national rate is statistically clear.
- Death, complication and readmission rates are adjusted by CMS for how sick patients were, so hospitals that treat sicker patients can be compared fairly.
- Infection results are ratios: 1.0 means as many infections as CMS predicted for a hospital like this one, below 1.0 is fewer.
- These are hospital-wide results. They do not rate an individual doctor, nurse or department, and they are not medical advice.
CMS Care Compare data retrieved 4 Oct 2026, refreshed weekly. Where this data comes from and how we handle it · Report an error
Common questions about Harlingen Medical Center
Is Harlingen Medical Center a good hospital?
Harlingen Medical Center has a CMS overall rating of 4 out of 5 stars. Of the 21 death, complication, infection and readmission measures CMS could compare, it does better than the nation on 5 and worse on 1. These are hospital-wide results published by CMS; they do not rate individual doctors or departments.
Would patients recommend Harlingen Medical Center?
77% of patients who answered CMS's national survey would definitely recommend it, against a US average of 71%. The figure comes from 400 completed HCAHPS surveys.
How long is the wait in the Harlingen Medical Center emergency room?
Emergency patients spend a median of 2 h 36 min in its emergency department before leaving (US median 2 h 42 min). Among US emergency departments with medium patient volume, like this one, the median is 2 h 45 min. 1% of emergency patients left before being seen (US 2%). These are medians over a year of visits, not a live wait time.