Methodology version 1.3
How the CareScore works
The CareScore is a procedure-specific summary of publicly reported information about a physician, the facilities where they operate and the experience of their patients. It is a starting point for a conversation with a clinician — not a medical recommendation.
Components
Weights that produce the score
Procedure experience
Estimated annual procedure volume and peer percentile from CMS utilization data.
Credentials & training
Board certification, fellowship training and license standing.
Facility quality
CMS quality measures for the facilities where the procedure is performed.
Quality & outcome indicators
Published complication and readmission measures where available.
Patient experience
Procedure-specific reviews and experience sub-ratings.
Safety & regulatory record
State board actions, license restrictions and federal exclusions.
Transparency & completeness
How complete and recently verified the underlying record is.
Insurance participation and cost are shown separately and never affect the clinical score. Each score carries a confidence level (HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW) based on data completeness, and every methodology version is retained so historical scores stay reproducible.
Provenance
Sources and freshness
NPPES
Provider identity, NPI, taxonomy, practice locations
Updated 3 days ago
CMS Care Compare
Clinician quality measures and utilization
Reporting period ending June 2026
CMS Hospital Compare
Facility quality, complications, readmissions
Updated 21 days ago
Georgia Composite Medical Board
License status and disciplinary actions
Updated 3 days ago
CMS Open Payments
Industry and manufacturer relationships
Program year 2025
Hospital price transparency files
Normalized negotiated rates by facility and payer
Updated 34 days ago
Payer directory files
Provider network participation
Verified 7–160 days ago by plan
Docvera verified patient reviews
Procedure-specific patient experience
Current
Trust rules
Principles applied from launch
- Advertising and premium profiles never change a CareScore or ranking.
- Physicians cannot pay to remove verified negative public information.
- Allegations are never displayed as findings: filings, dismissals, settlements, judgments and board actions stay distinct.
- Serious disciplinary or litigation records are never attached to a physician on fuzzy name matching alone; low-confidence matches go to manual review.
- Missing information is never treated as negative — it is labeled as not found in monitored sources.
- Every material data point shows a source and a last-verified date.
- Facility quality measures describe the facility, not the individual physician.
Identity resolution
How records become one physician
Every match receives a confidence score. Matches below threshold enter a data review queue for manual verification before anything appears on a public profile.