Government
Medicare claims must now have an NPI
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted March 17, 2008
On March 1, Medicare began requiring physicians to use their national provider identifiers on electronic and paper claims. Medicare claims without an NPI will be rejected, said the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. For now, physicians can use their old ID numbers along with their new NPIs on claims. Starting May 23, however, doctors must use their NPIs only. On that date, private payers also will require that doctors use only their NPIs on all electronic claims. Policies on physician IDs for paper claims vary by insurer.
CMS suggests that doctors, if they haven't done so already, immediately begin submitting a small number of Medicare claims using only their NPIs to test their ability to get paid under the new system. If successful, they should increase the number of NPI-only claims. Physicians whose claims are rejected even though they've used their NPIs should check their record in the National Plan and Provider Enumeration System to verify or update their registry record, CMS said. If the problem continues, they should call their Medicare contractor. More information is available online (link).
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2008/03/17/gvbf0317.htm.
