Appeals/Reopenings

Medicare Part B 101 Manual Appeals/Reopenings Table of contents Reopenings for Minor Errors and Omissions Telephone Reopening Unit Appeals Time Limit for Filing Appointment of Representative Redeterminations Acceptable Signature [...]

CMS-1500 Claim Form

Medicare Part B 101 Manual CMS-1500 Claim Form Table of Contents General Information Claim Filing Instructions for Paper and Electronic Submission Regulations on Charging for Claim Form Completion OCR System Missing, Incomplete, [...]

Comprehensive Error Rate Testing

Medicare Part B 101 Manual Comprehensive Error Rate Testing Table of Contents Comprehensive Error Rate Testing What Is CERT? How Long Do Providers Have to Respond to a Request From the CERT Contractor? What Happens if the Provider [...]

Fraud and Abuse

Medicare Part B 101 Manual Fraud and Abuse Fraud and Abuse Unified Program Integrity Contractors Defining Fraud and Abuse Fraud Abuse Bribes, Kickbacks and Rebates Penalties Waiving Deductible and Coinsurance What You Can Do As a [...]

Medical Policy Development

Medicare Part B 101 Manual Medical Policy Development Table of Contents Medical Policy Development National Policies National Coverage Determinations National Coverage Provisions in Interpretive Manuals Local Policies [...]

Help with Medicare Costs

Help with Medicare Costs Medicare Savings Programs Learn about your options for help with Part B premiums Costs for Medicare Drug Coverage Learn how to get extra help with Part D Revised 11/1/2024

Don’t Wait Until 11/18/2024 To Use NGSConnex for Beneficiary Eligibility Information

Don’t Wait Until 11/18/2024 To Use NGSConnex for Beneficiary Eligibility Information  As we’ve communicated, beginning 11/18/2024, Beneficiary Eligibility information will not be offered on the IVR. This includes all beneficiary [...]

Report a Change of Tax ID (Other than Change of Ownership)

Step 1: Determine You are in the Right Place If you are currently an enrolled health care organization that is changing your Tax ID and the change does not involve a change of ownership, it is essential that you report changes of Tax ID within [...]

Report a Change of Tax ID (Other than Change of Ownership)

Step 1: Determine You are in the Right Place If you are currently an enrolled health care organization that is changing your Tax ID and the change does not involve a change of ownership, it is essential that you report changes of Tax ID within [...]

Report a Change of Tax ID (Other than Change of Ownership)

Table of Contents Step 1: Determine You are in the Right Place Step 2: Complete the Medicare Application Step 3: Submit Required Documentation Related Content [Return to Top] Step 1: Determine You are in the Right Place If you are [...]

Mission and Charter

​​National Government Services Provider Outreach and Education Advisory Group Charter National Government Services serves as the MAC for J6 and JK Part A, Part B and Home Health and Hospice. We maintain four POE AGs: Part A POE [...]

Medicare Part B Electronic Claims that Exceed the Threshold for Charges and Units of Service

Medicare Part B Electronic Claims that Exceed the Threshold for Charges and Units of Service  Medicare Part B electronic claims (ANSI X12 837P) with total charges exceeding $99,999.99 cannot be processed in the MCS. If a single claim [...]

MLN Connects® Newsletter: October 31, 2024

MLN Connects® Newsletter: October 31, 2024 News Medicare Shared Savings Program Continues to Deliver Meaningful Savings and High-Quality Health Care Compliance Major Hip & Knee Replacement or Reattachment of Lower Extremity: [...]

11/4/2024

This is Our Last Self-Service Pulse We sincerely thank you for being a loyal reader of our Self-Service Pulse each week. To continue receiving updates on our latest self-service tools and services, please subscribe to our general Email [...]

Report a Change of Ownership, Acquisition/Merger or Consolidation

Table of Contents Step 1: Determine You Are in the Right Place Step 2: Understand Type of CHOW Change of Ownership Acquisition/Merger Consolidation CHOW Reminders Step 3: Make Changes via Enrollment Application Change of [...]

Two Weeks to Prepare to use NGSConnex for Beneficiary Eligibility Information

Two Weeks to Prepare to use NGSConnex for Beneficiary Eligibility Information As we’ve communicated, beginning 11/18/2024, Beneficiary Eligibility information will not be offered on the IVR. This includes all beneficiary eligibility [...]

Instructions for Unfinished PECOS Enrollment Application(s)

Table of Contents Instructions for Unfinished PECOS Enrollment Application(s) Instructions for Unfinished PECOS Application(s) Instructions for Application Status “Pending E-Signature” Submitted Enrollment Application(s) on Behalf of an [...]

Report a Change of Information

Report change of enrollment information timely. Changes can be either submitted electronically via PECOS or by mail with the paper CMS-855A and/or CMS-588 EFT agreement. A change in the Tax ID with no ownership change will need to submit [...]

Report a Change of Information

Report change of enrollment information timely. Changes can be either submitted electronically via PECOS or by mail with the paper CMS-855A and/or CMS-588 EFT agreement. A change in the Tax ID with no ownership change will need to submit [...]

Report a Change of Information

Table of Contents Report a Change of Information PECOS Submission Related Content Paper Submission Related Content [Return to Top] Report a Change of Information Report change of enrollment information [...]

Coming Soon ‒ The CY 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule

Coming Soon ‒ The CY 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule The CY 2025 MPFS will soon be available on the Fee Schedule Lookup tool located on NGSMedicare.com, after the CY 2025 physician fee schedule regulation is put on display. Once the Fee [...]

Ambulance Transports Excluded from SNF Consolidated Billing

Ambulance Transports Excluded from SNF Consolidated Billing When a Medicare beneficiary is a resident in a SNF under a Part A stay, not all ambulance transports are included in the PPS (prospective payment system) payment for a SNF. SNF [...]

Ambulance Medical Necessity Reminder for ESRD Patients

Ambulance Medical Necessity Reminder for ESRD Patients National Government Services receives a significant amount of dialysis facility ambulance transports that do not meet medical necessity criteria. Documentation must explicitly describe the [...]

Related Content

Related Content Ambulance Services Center MLN® Booklet: Medicare Ambulance Transports Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Internet-Only Manual (IOM) Publication 100-02, Medicare Benefit Policy Manual, Chapter 10, [...]

Billing for A0426 or A0428

Billing for A0426 or A0428 National Government Services has been receiving electronic claims with the 2300 REF segment (G1 qualifier) for prior authorization, however, the value entered in REF02 is a ZIP code. This segment is intended for the [...]

Medical Necessity of Ambulance Services

Medical Necessity of Ambulance Services Table of Contents Medical Necessity of Ambulance Services What You Can Do Nearest Appropriate Facility: GY Modifier What You Can Do Related Content [Return to Top] Medical [...]

Prior Authorization of Repetitive Scheduled Non-Emergent Ambulance Transport

Responsibility of Providing a Properly Executed Physician Certification Statement/Certificate of Medically Necessity

Responsibility of Providing a Properly Executed Physician Certification Statement/Certificate of Medically Necessity Recent National Government Services educational efforts have highlighted an issue between facilities and the ambulance [...]

Proper Claim Submission for Repetitive, Scheduled, Non-Emergent Ambulance Transports

Proper Claim Submission for Repetitive, Scheduled, Non-Emergent Ambulance Transports The CMS implemented the prior authorization of RSNAT. NGS J6 states Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin were added to the RSNAT Model effective with dates [...]

Membership Rosters

Membership Rosters Member Lists JK Part A J6 Part A Federally Qualified Health Center (All States) Revised 11/4/2024

Billing Medicare Part A When Veteran’s Administration Eligible Medicare Beneficiaries Receive Services in Non-VA Facilities

Billing Medicare Part A When Veteran’s Administration Eligible Medicare Beneficiaries Receive Services in Non-VA Facilities Table of Contents Background Beneficiary Chooses to Use Medicare Beneficiary Chooses to Use VA Benefits VA [...]

New Provider Center

New Provider Center National Government Services: A Medicare Administrative Contractor – Who Are We? A MAC is a private health care insurer to whom the CMS has awarded geographic jurisdiction to process FFS Medicare claims for beneficiaries [...]

New Provider Center

New Provider Center National Government Services: A Medicare Administrative Contractor Who Are We? A MAC is a private health care insurer to whom the CMS has awarded geographic jurisdiction to process FFS Medicare claims for beneficiaries [...]

New Provider Center

New Provider Center National Government Services: A Medicare Administrative Contractor – Who Are We? A MAC is a private health care insurer to whom the CMS has awarded geographic jurisdiction to process FFS Medicare claims for beneficiaries [...]

New Provider Center

New Provider Center National Government Services: A Medicare Administrative Contractor – Who Are We? A MAC is a private health care insurer to whom the CMS has awarded geographic jurisdiction to process FFS Medicare claims for beneficiaries [...]

November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month

November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death in the United States and worldwide. Although education, research and treatment options for lung cancer have dramatically improved in recent years, lung [...]

Registration Now Open for the 2024 Preventive Services Virtual Conference!

Registration Now Open for the 2024 Preventive Services Virtual Conference! We are thrilled to announce that registration is now open for the National Government Services Medicare Part B 2024 Preventive Services Virtual Conference, taking place [...]

Intensive Outpatient Program

Intensive Outpatient Program Table of Contents IOP vs. Partial Hospitalization Program Provider Types Eligible to Provide IOP Medicare Beneficiary Eligible for IOP Services Active Treatment and Treatment Plan Covered IOP Services [...]

Introduction

Section 1: Introduction Introduction Disclaimer National Government Services produced this material as an informational reference for providers furnishing services in our contract jurisdiction. NGS employees, agents and staff make no [...]

Federal Government Administration

Section 1: Introduction Table of Contents Federal Government Administration Who Is CMS? CMS' Goals Program Objectives Access to Quality Care Services to Beneficiaries Program Administration CMS Structure CMS [...]

Fundamentals of Medicare: State Responsibilities

Section 1: Introduction State Responsibilities Facilities desiring to participate in either the Medicare or Medicaid programs must meet participation conditions for certification. State agencies certify to the DHHS whether providers satisfy, [...]

Fundamentals of Medicare: Participating Providers

Section 1: Introduction Participating Providers Providers receiving Medicare reimbursement are known as “participating providers.” To become a participating provider, a provider must be in compliance with applicable provisions of Title VI of [...]

Voluntary and Involuntary Termination of Provider Agreement

Section 1: Introduction Voluntary and Involuntary Termination of Provider Agreement Table of Contents Voluntary and Involuntary Termination of Provider Agreement Voluntary (Provider-Requested) Termination of Agreement Involuntary [...]

Disclosure of Health Insurance Information

Section 1: Introduction Disclosure of Health Insurance Information Providers have restrictions on the information that they may disclose. The CMS IOM, Publication 100, Medicare General Information, Eligibility and Entitlement Manual, Chapter [...]

Privacy Act

Section 1: Introduction Privacy Act The purpose of the Privacy Act of 1974 (Act), Title 5, United States Code, Section 552a, is to balance the government’s need to maintain information about individuals with the rights of individuals to be [...]

National Provider Identifier

Section 1: Introduction National Provider Identifier The NPI is a HIPAA Administrative Simplification standard. The NPI is a unique identification number for covered health care providers that have replaced the legacy provider number. [...]

Legacy Provider Numbers/Provider Transaction Access Numbers (PTANs)

Section 1: Introduction Legacy Provider Numbers/Provider Transaction Access Numbers Table of Contents Legacy Provider Numbers/Provider Transaction Access Numbers State Code Facility Type Third-Digit Specialty Unit Designations [...]

Medicare Administrative Contractors

Section 1: Introduction Medicare Administrative Contractors What's A MAC Who are the MACs Table of Contents Medicare Administrative Contractors Who Is National Government Services? The Focus of the Provider Outreach & Education [...]

Fundamentals of Medicare: Information References

Section 1: Introduction Information References Table of Contents Information References Telephone Inquiries Interactive Voice Response Eligibility Information Claim Status Information Check and Remittance Information General [...]

Acronyms

Section 1: Introduction Acronyms An acronym is a term formed from the initial letter or letters of each of the major parts of a compound term. Listings of common Medicare acronyms are found on the CMS website. Reviewed 6/4/2024

Fundamentals of Medicare: Glossary of Terms

Section 1: Introduction Glossary of Terms Beneficiary: An individual who is eligible for Medicare. Benefit Period: The way that Medicare measures the use of hospital and SNF inpatient days. Claim: A bill for services rendered by a provider [...]

The History of Medicare

Section 2: Medicare Basics The History of Medicare During the 30 years following the passage of the SSA in 1935, many attempts were made to include health insurance as part of the Social Security system. It was not until the bill H.R. 6675 [...]

What Is the Medicare Program and How Is It Funded?

Section 2: Medicare Basics What Is the Medicare Program and How Is it Funded? Medicare is a federally funded health insurance program for: People age 65 or older Certain individuals under age 65 who qualify due to disability People with [...]

Medicare Eligibility and Premiums

Section 2: Medicare Basics Medicare Eligibility and Premiums The following groups of people are eligible for Medicare: Individuals aged 65 or older (or their spouse) who have worked at least 40 quarters, or ten years, in Medicare-covered [...]

The Social Security Administration and Medicare Enrollment

Section 2: Medicare Basics The Social Security Administration and Medicare Enrollment The SSA office has the responsibility for handling Medicare enrollment and managing premium billing and payment. Premiums may be deducted from a [...]

The Medicare Card

Section 2: Medicare Basics The Medicare Card Once a person is enrolled in Medicare, they are issued a card that indicates they are covered by Medicare. The Medicare card is red, white and blue in color. It is issued (and can be reissued) [...]

Inpatient Hospital Care

Section 2: Medicare Basics Inpatient Hospital Care Table of Contents Inpatient Hospital Care Inpatient Benefit Days and Cost-Sharing Full Days—Renewable Coinsurance Days—Renewable Lifetime Reserve Days—Nonrenewing Inpatient [...]

Skilled Nursing Facility Inpatient Care

Section 2: Medicare Basics Skilled Nursing Facility Inpatient Care Table of Contents Skilled Nursing Facility Inpatient Care Requirements for Coverage Technical Requirements Medical Requirements Inpatient SNF/Swing Bed Benefit [...]

Home Health Care Benefit

Section 2: Medicare Basics Home Health Care Benefit Table of contents Home Health Care Benefit Responsibilities of Hospitals Discharging Medicare Beneficiaries Home Health Prospective Payment System Responsibilities of Providers [...]