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Methodology and sources
Everything here is derived from free, public CMS files. This page exists so you can check our work, and so you can go get the raw data yourself if you would rather.
Where the data comes from
| Dataset | File | CMS published | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home Health Agency Enrollments | HHA_Enrollments_2026.07.17.csv | 2026-07-27 | Download |
| Home Health Agency All Owners | HHA_All_Owners_2026.07.17.csv | 2026-08-19 | Download |
| Hospice Enrollments | Hospice_Enrollments_2026.07.17.csv | 2026-07-27 | Download |
| Hospice All Owners | Hospice_All_Owners_2026.07.17.csv | 2026-08-19 | Download |
| Skilled Nursing Facility Change of Ownership | SNF_CHOW_2026.07.17.csv | 2026-07-27 | Download |
| Skilled Nursing Facility Change of Ownership - Owner Information | SNF_CHOW_Owners_2026.07.17.csv | 2026-07-27 | Download |
| Skilled Nursing Facility Enrollments | SNF_Enrollments_2026.07.31.csv | 2026-08-17 | Download |
| Skilled Nursing Facility All Owners | SNF_All_Owners_2026.07.31.csv | 2026-08-17 | Download |
All files are published by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services under usa.gov/government-works — United States Government works, public domain. We re-resolve the current file from the CMS catalogue on every run rather than hardcoding a URL, because CMS rotates the dated filename each release.
What we add
CMS publishes owners as separate legal entities with no key linking them. One operator routinely appears as a dozen companies — a property entity, an operating entity, a management company, a therapy company. Nothing in the file says they are the same business.
We group entities into a corporate family when their facility portfolios materially overlap: both entities must control at least three facilities, share at least three, and the shared set must be at least 80% of the smaller entity's portfolio. Entities appearing only as lenders, mortgage holders or trustees are excluded from family grouping — a bank holding paper on sixty buildings does not operate them.
Corporate families are our analysis, not a CMS designation. Where we are wrong, tell us and we will fix it.
What we deliberately do not publish
- We do not build pages about individually named owners. Individuals are counted, never named.
- We do not name personal ownership vehicles — family trusts, living trusts and estate entities carrying a person's name. CMS files these as organisations, but they identify a natural person, so they are counted toward totals and never given a page, a URL or a purchase link. 785 such entities are currently suppressed.
- We do not paywall anything behind a person's name.
- We do not characterise operators. We report what was filed and when.
- We do not attempt to reconstruct any figure CMS has suppressed.
Limits you should know about
- Ownership is self-reported by the enrolling provider. CMS does not verify it, and neither do we.
- The private-equity and REIT flags are checkboxes on the enrolment form. Academic work has found the PE flag substantially under-reports true PE ownership held through intermediate holding companies.
- The change-of-ownership file lags. Recent quarters are incomplete and fill in over time.
- Facility counts reflect Medicare enrolment, which is not identical to state licensure.
Corrections
Email corrections@whoownscare.com with the facility name and CCN. We respond within two business days, log every request, and publish the corrected page with an updated date. Where the dispute is with what CMS holds, we will point you at the CMS record and the process for amending it.