[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 20 (Monday, January 31, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-1978]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: January 31, 1994]
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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
[BPO-094-GN]
RIN 0938-AF05
Medicare Program; Medicare Secondary Payment
AGENCY: Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA), HHS.
ACTION: General notice.
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SUMMARY: This notice provides guidelines for complying with 42 CFR
411.25, which provides that certain third party payers for health
services furnished to Medicare beneficiaries must furnish certain
information to Medicare intermediaries and carriers when they learn
that Medicare made primary payment for services for which the third
party payer has made or should have made primary payment. The notice
also informs third party payers that they should contact HCFA if they
wish to discuss arrangements for exchanging, on a voluntary basis, data
about beneficiaries for whom the third party payer has a primary
payment obligation under the Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) provisions
of the Medicare law.
The third party payers affected by this notice are workers'
compensation plans and insurers; all liability and no-fault insurers,
including automobile insurers; and group health plans under certain
circumstances, including plans which are self-insured and/or self-
administered. If the group health plan, or workers' compensation plan
is self- insured and self-administered, the employer must provide the
notice; otherwise the insurer, underwriter or third party administrator
must give the notice. This description of information third party
payers must furnish is intended to help ensure that, in accordance with
the Medicare law, Medicare pays only secondary to primary coverage of
third party payers.
EFFECTIVE DATE: This notice is effective for Medicare claims paid on or
after April 1, 1994.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Cathy Carter, (410) 966-7449.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
One of the priorities of the Department of Health and Human
Services (HHS) is to encourage high quality and effective health care
while pursuing strategies to contain or moderate health care costs and
Medicare expenditures. When Medicare was originally enacted, Medicare
was the primary payer, except where services were covered under a
workers' compensation plan. However, since 1980, Congress has made
additional third party payers subject to the Medicare secondary payer
law (section 1862(b) of the Social Security Act (the Act)). Under
current law, Medicare is the secondary payer where services are covered
by:
1. A workers' compensation law or plan;
2. No-fault insurance, including automobile no-fault;
3. Any liability insurance policy, or plan, including an automobile
liability insurance policy or plan;
4. Group health plans during a period (generally up to 18 months)
when an individual is entitled to Medicare based on end-stage renal
disease;
5. Group health plans where the Medicare beneficiary is employed by
an employer of 20 or more full or part-time employees, and is age 65 or
over, or is age 65 or over and the spouse of an individual of any age
employed by an employer of 20 or more full or part-time employees; and
6. Large group health plans (plans of one or more employers where
at least one of the employers has 100 or more full or part-time
employees) in the case of a disabled individual whose coverage is based
on his or her current employment or on the current employment of a
family member.
The Medicare secondary payer regulations at 42 CFR part 411
describe these provisions in detail, except for their application to
disabled beneficiaries. The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1993
(Pub. L. 103-66) makes the disabled beneficiary provision similar to
that of the working aged, effective August 10, 1993. Final rules are
currently being developed which will take into account changes in law.
Although the provisions of the law and regulations clearly identify
those situations in which payers are primary to Medicare for particular
beneficiaries, information on file and information submitted with
individual claims does not always indicate that multiple payment
sources are available. Consequently, Medicare intermediaries and
carriers sometimes mistakenly make conditional primary payments when
another payer should pay primary.
Our regulations at 42 CFR 411.25 (upheld by the U.S. District Court
for the District of Columbia in Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association
v. Sullivan, No. 90-1528 (RCL) (D. D.C. April 7, 1992), appeal filed,
(D.C. Cir. May 22, 1992)) specify that a third party payer must give
notice to Medicare if it learns that Medicare has made a primary
payment in a situation where that third party payer made or should have
made the primary payment. A third party payer is considered to learn
that Medicare has made a primary payment when the third party payer
receives information that Medicare had made a primary payment, or when
it receives information sufficient to draw the conclusion that Medicare
has made a primary payment. Examples include, but are not limited to,
the following:
1. The third party payer has received a copy of an Explanation of
Medicare Benefits (EOMB) form, and the EOMB shows that Medicare has
made a primary payment for services for which the third party has made,
or ought to have made, primary payment.
2. A beneficiary for whom Medicare should be secondary payer states
in correspondence provided to the third party payer that Medicare has
made primary payment for a given item or service for which the
beneficiary has primary coverage under the third party payer's plan.
3. A beneficiary who is eligible for Medicare files a claim for
primary payment with a third party payer, the claim is denied, the
beneficiary appeals, and the denial is reversed. (The third party payer
should assume that Medicare made a conditional primary payment in the
interim.)
Third Party Payer Reporting Requirements
42 CFR 411.25 requires a third party payer to notify HCFA when it
learns that Medicare has made conditional primary payment for items or
services for which the third party payer has made or should have made
primary payment. We intend to use reported information to--
Update and correct information in our system of records
regarding MSP situations;
Identify and recover any conditional primary payments made
for items and services which have been paid for or could be paid for by
a primary payer.
This notice is directed to--
Workers' compensation plans and insurers;
Liability and no-fault insurers, including automobile
insurers; and
Group health plans and large group health plans--their
insurers, underwriters, and third party administrators; and sponsoring
employers, employee organizations, and similar groups.
General Notice Requirements
As required by Sec. 411.25(a), any third party payer that learns
that a Medicare intermediary or carrier has made a Medicare primary
payment for items or services for which the third party payer has made
or should have made primary payment, must give notice to that effect to
the Medicare intermediary or carrier that paid the claim. The notice
should be directed to the attention of the Medicare Secondary Payer
Coordinator. As required by Sec. 411.25(b), the third party payer must
describe the specific situation, the circumstances, and the time period
for which the third party payer may be primary to Medicare.
In instances where the third party payer does not know which
Medicare intermediary or carrier paid the claim, the third party payer
should contact the HCFA regional office which services the State in
which the provider or the physician or other supplier is located. The
regional office can provide the name and address of the appropriate
intermediary or carrier. Following is a listing of the HCFA regional
offices, their addresses, telephone numbers, and the States they
service.
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Regional Office States served
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HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts,
Coordinator, John F. Kennedy New Hampshire, Rhode Island,
Federal Building, 23rd Floor, Vermont.
Boston, MA 02203, (617) 565-1267.
HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico,
Coordinator, 26 Federal Plaza, Virgin Islands.
Room 3811, New York, NY 10278,
(212) 264-3124.
HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP Delaware, District of Columbia,
Coordinator, 3535 Market Street, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia,
Room 3100, Philadelphia, PA 19101, West Virginia.
(215) 596-6835.
HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP Alabama, Florida, Georgia,
Coordinator, 101 Marietta Street, Kentucky, Mississippi, North
Suite 701 Atlanta, GA 30323, (404) Carolina, South Carolina,
331-2240. Tennessee.
HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP Illinois, Indiana, Michigan,
Coordinator, 105 West Adams Minesota, Ohio, Wisconsin.
Street, 15th Floor, Chicago, IL
60603-6201, (312) 353-9841.
HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico,
Coordinator, 1200 Main Tower Oklahoma, Texas.
Building, Room 2000, Dallas, TX
75202, (214) 767-6402.
HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP Iowa, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska.
Coordinator, New Federal Office
Building, 601 East 12th Street,
Room 235, Kansas City, MO 64106,
(816) 426-2866.
HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP Clorado, Montana, North Dakota,
Coordinator, Federal Office South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming.
Building, 1961 Stout Street, Room
574, Denver, CO 80294, (303) 844-
6149 ext. 0.
HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP American Smaoa, Arizona,
Coordinator, 75 Hawthorne Street, California, Guam, Hawaii, Nevada.
4th Floor, San Francisco, CA
94105, (415) 744-3635,.
HCFA Regional Office, ATTN: MSP Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington.
Coordinator, 2201 Sixth Avenue, RX
40, Seattle, WA 98121, (206) 553-
2350.
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Liability, No-Fault and Workers' Compensation Insurers
In order to meet the requirements of Sec. 411.25, workers'
compensation plans and insurers (including employers in the case of
self-insured and/or self-administered plans), liability insurers
(including automobile liability insurers), and no-fault insurers
(including automobile no-fault insurers) must provide the following
information to the Medicare intermediary or carrier that paid the claim
when the third party payer learns that Medicare has mistakenly made a
primary payment for services for which the third party payer has
primary payment responsibility:
Medicare Beneficiary Information:
Beneficiary name, address, sex, and date of birth
Beneficiary health insurance claim number (i.e., Medicare
beneficiary identification number or ``HIC number'')
Social security number (if known)
Medicare Claim Information:
Date of accident, injury, or illness
Provider of service
Amount of Medicare payment (if known)
Date of service
Date of Medicare payment (if known)
Insurer, Employer, or Administrator Information:
Policyholder name and address
Name and address of insurer or administrator
Policy identification number or other identifier
Individual case identifiers used by third party payer (if
applicable)
Name and phone number of insurer or administrator contact
person
Workers' compensation agency claim number (if applicable)
Court case or docket numbers (if applicable)
Beneficiary's attorney's name, address and phone number (if
known and applicable)
Name, address, and phone number of employer
Date and amount of payment (specify whether undisputed
payment, settlement of disputed claim, or judgment)
Whether, under the plan or insurance, payment was considered
to be a primary or a secondary payment
Payee name and address
Employer and Employee Plans
In order to meet the requirements of Sec. 411.25, insurers,
underwriters, third party administrators of group health plans and
large group health plans, and employers (in the case of self-insured
and/or self-administered plans) must provide the following information
to the Medicare intermediary or carrier that processed the claim when
they learn that Medicare has mistakenly paid primary for services for
which the third party payer should be the primary payer--
Medicare Beneficiary Information:
Beneficiary name, address, sex, and date of birth
Beneficiary health insurance claim number (i.e., Medicare
beneficiary identification number or ``HIC number'')
Social security number (if known)
Medicare Claim Information:
Date of accident, injury, or illness
Provider of service
Amount of Medicare payment (if known)
Date of service
Date of Medicare payment (if known)
Employer Health Plan Information:
Policyholder name and address (usually, the employee)
Beneficiary's relationship to policyholder (self, spouse,
other)
Insurer, underwriter, or third party administrator name and
address
Sponsoring employer or employee organization name and address
Group identification number or other identifier
Policy identification number or other identifier
Individual beneficiary identifiers (if unique identifier used
by employer group health plan)
Name and phone number of contact person
Period during which the individual was covered under the group
health plan. If the coverage is still in effect, this fact must be
stated.
Date and amount of payment
Whether, under the plan or insurance, payment was considered
to be a primary or a secondary payment
Payee name and address
Incomplete Information and Continuing Duty to Report
In the event that a third party payer does not have all the items
of information designated, it should still report the information it
does have, and certify that it has no other information. In the event
the third party payer subsequently obtains a previously unreported item
of information, it must report such information unless the third party
payer knows that Medicare has recovered the full amount of the primary
payment the third party was obligated to pay, or the Medicare payment,
if less.
Voluntary Reporting of Possible Medicare Secondary Payment Situations
Medicare has established a routine use of information within its
Privacy Act systems of records (Privacy Act of 1974; Matching Program,
55 FR 37549, September 12, 1990). This routine use allows a mutually
beneficial exchange of information concerning matched individuals.
Mutual exchange of MSP information is in the interest of all parties
because it can prevent confusion, mistakes, and possibly costly
disputes. If, after reviewing the routine use notice, your organization
is interested in voluntarily reporting or exchanging MSP information,
please write to HCFA at the following address for information: Health
Care Financing Administration, Bureau of Program Operations, Division
of Entitlement and Benefit Coordination, Meadows East Building, room
368, 6300 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland 21207, Attn: Ms.
Patricia Talley, (410) 966-7452.
Information Collection Requirements
The information collection requirements contained in this notice
required by 42 CFR 411.25 were approved and assigned Control Number OMB
0938-0564 by the Executive Office of Management and Budget under the
authority of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1980 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et
seq.).
Authority: Section 1102 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
1302)
(Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Program No. 93.773,
Medicare--Hospital Insurance; and Program No. 93.774, Medicare--
Supplementary Medical Insurance Program)
Dated: January 24, 1994.
Bruce C. Vladeck,
Administrator, Health Care Financing Administration.
[FR Doc. 94-1978 Filed 1-28-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4120-01-P