This document provides information about Hospital Compare, a tool from the CMS Hospital Quality Initiative that allows consumers to compare the quality of care between hospitals. It includes data on over 4,000 Medicare hospitals. The initiative aims to improve healthcare quality through public reporting and accountability. Consumers can use Hospital Compare to make informed decisions about which hospital to use based on quality. Hospitals are incentivized to provide better care. The tool reports on timely and effective care measures, readmission rates, complications, deaths and payments for procedures compared to national averages.