Using the Medicare Coverage Database: How to Find Important Medicare Coverage Information

Are you responsible for looking up whether a service is covered in the Medicare program at your facility but you're not sure where to look for the most relevant information? As a health care provider, you are responsible for understanding [...]

The National Correct Coding Initiatives Procedure-to-Procedure and Medically Unlikely Edits

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services developed the National Correct Coding Initiative (NCCI) program to promote national correct coding. Incorrect coding often leads to improper payment and increases the paid claims error rate. If you [...]

Radiopharmaceutical Reimbursement National Government Services has reviewed the radiopharmaceutical pricing methodology set forth in the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act of 2003, Section 303(h) which states that [...]

Administrative Simplification Compliance Act Waiver Request Form

July 2025 Release "Dark Days" for the Common Working File Hosts

July 2025 Release "Dark Days" for the Common Working File Hosts For the Upcoming July 2025 Release: For Production, CWF will be observing the Gray Day on Wednesday, 7/2/2025 and Dark Days starting Thursday, 7/3/2025 (including July 4th [...]

July 2025 EDI Front End Quarterly Release

July 2025 EDI Front End Quarterly Release Please be advised that while the CMS mandated release for July 2025 will be installed the weekend of 7/6/2025, the code set updates included with this release will not be effective in the EDI Front-End [...]

July 2025 EDI Front End Quarterly Release

July 2025 EDI Front End Quarterly Release Please be advised that while the CMS mandated release for July 2025 will be installed the weekend of 7/6/2025, the code set updates included with this release will not be effective in the EDI Front-End [...]

Claim Denials for Medically Unnecessary Ambulance Transports: Avoiding Reason Code 55B10

Claim Denials for Medically Unnecessary Ambulance Transports Table of Contents Claim Denials for Medically Unnecessary Ambulance Transports Medical Necessity and Coverage Guidelines for Ambulance Transport Avoiding Reason Code 55B10 [...]

Coverage of Rural Air Ambulance Services

Coverage of Rural Air Ambulance Services Section 415 of the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 provides coverage for rural air ambulance services that are reasonable and necessary and ordered by qualified personnel. Medicare considers the [...]

Provisional Period of Enhanced Oversight for New Hospices

Provisional Period of Enhanced Oversight for New Hospices In recent years, CMS has reported a significant increase in fraudulent hospice billing practices, which cost the Medicare Program millions of dollars annually. The CMS has initiated a [...]

Untimely Filed Notice of Election Circumstance Exception: Medicare Beneficiary Is Granted Retroactive Medicare Entitlement

Untimely Filed Notice of Election Circumstance Exception: Medicare Beneficiary Is Granted Retroactive Medicare Entitlement Table of Contents Untimely Filed Notice of Election Circumstance Exception: Medicare Beneficiary Is Granted [...]

Hospice Billing Codes Chart

Hospice Billing Codes Chart Table of Contents Hospice Billing Codes Chart Condition Codes (CC) (UB-04 FL 18-28) Occurrence Codes (OC) and Dates (UB-04 FLs 31-34) Occurrence Span Code and Date (UB-04 FLs 35-36) Value Codes (VCs) and CBSA [...]

Appropriate Use of Occurrence Code 27 and Occurrence Span Code 77

Appropriate Use of Occurrence Code 27 and Occurrence Span Code 77 Table of Contents Appropriate Use of Occurrence Code 27 and Occurrence Span Code 77 Example of the Proper Use of OC 27 Example of the Proper Use of OC 27 with OSC 77 [...]

Filing an Electronic Notice of Change of Ownership (TOB 8XE)

Filing an Electronic Notice of Change of Ownership (TOB 8XE) The Notice of Change of Ownership (TOB 8XE) is submitted when the hospice has a change of ownership that results in a change of the PTAN. Please refer to the Hospice Change of [...]

Hospice Change of Ownership

Hospice Change of Ownership Table of Contents Hospice Change of Ownership What is Not a CHOW The Provider Enrollment Process Purchase Agreement Merger/Acquisition [Return to Top] Hospice Change of Ownership CHOW is defined [...]

Filing an Electronic Notice of Cancelation (Type of Bill 8XD)

Filing an Electronic Notice of Cancelation (Type of Bill 8XD) Table of Contents Filing an Electronic Notice of Cancelation (Type of Bill 8XD) Steps to Cancel a NOE Steps to Cancel a Benefit Period Submitting the 8XD Related Content [...]

Filing an Electronic Notice of Transfer (Type of Bill 8XC)

Filing an Electronic Notice of Transfer (Type of Bill 8XC) Table of Contents Filing an Electronic Notice of Transfer (Type of Bill 8XC) Correcting the Transfer Date on a Previous Submitted Notice of Transfer Related Content [Return to [...]

Hospice Site of Service Codes

Hospice Site of Service Codes Table of Contents Hospice Site of Service Codes HCPCS Codes Site of Service Location Notes Edits Related Content [Return to Top] Hospice Site of Service Codes Hospice agencies must report an HCPCS [...]

17729 and 17730 Hospice Claim Edits for Certifying Physicians

17729 and 17730 Hospice Claim Edits for Certifying Physicians Effective for hospice claims with claim ‘From’ dates on or after 6/3/2024, new claim edits have been implemented per CR 13342 to enforce CMS’ rule to deny hospice claims if the name [...]

Billing Hospice Transfers

Billing Hospice Transfers Once a beneficiary elects to receive care under the Medicare hospice benefit, he or she waives rights to Medicare payments for hospice care provided by any other hospice other than the one they have chosen/designated. [...]