Social security act title xviii standard references

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Many questions can be answered on the Help & Resources page in the How To Library or by viewing the FAQs below. Please take a look and if you still have questions or would like to leave feedback, contact us!

Are you a provider and have a question about billing or coding?

Please contact your Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC). MACs can be found in the MAC Contacts Report.

Do you have questions related to the content of a specific Local Coverage Determination (LCD) or an Article?

Please contact the Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) who owns the document. The contractor information can be found at the top of the document in the Contractor Information section (expand the section to see the details). MACs can also be can be found in the MAC Contacts Report.

Are you a beneficiary and have questions about your coverage?

Please call 1-800-Medicare or visit Medicare.gov

Are you looking for codes? (e.g., CPT/HCPCS, ICD-10)

Local Coverage

For the most part, codes are no longer included in the LCD (policy). You will find them in the Billing & Coding Articles. Try using the MCD Search to find what you're looking for. Enter the code you're looking for in the "Enter keyword, code, or document ID" box. The list of results will include documents which contain the code you entered.

Please Note: For Durable Medical Equipment (DME) MACs only, CPT/HCPCS codes remain located in LCDs. All other Codes (ICD-10, Bill Type, and Revenue) have moved to Articles for DME MACs, as they have for the other Local Coverage MAC types.

National Coverage

NCDs do not contain claims processing information like diagnosis or procedure codes nor do they give instructions to the provider on how to bill Medicare for the service or item. For this supplementary claims processing information we rely on other CMS publications, namely Change Requests (CR) Transmittals and inclusions in the Medicare Fee-For-Service Claims Processing Manual (CPM).

In order for CMS to change billing and claims processing systems to accommodate the coverage conditions within the NCD, we instruct contractors and system maintainers to modify the claims processing systems at the national or local level through CR Transmittals. CRs are not policy, rather CRs are used to relay instructions regarding the edits of the various claims processing systems in very descriptive, technical language usually employing the codes or code combinations likely to be encountered with claims subject to the policy in question. As clinical or administrative codes change or system or policy requirements dictate, CR instructions are updated to ensure the systems are applying the most appropriate claims processing instructions applicable to the policy.

How do I find out if a specific CPT code is covered in my state?

Enter the CPT/HCPCS code in the MCD Search and select your state from the drop down. (You may have to accept the AMA License Agreement.) Look for a Billing and Coding Article in the results and open it. (Or, for DME MACs only, look for an LCD.) Review the article, in particular the Coding Information section.

If you need more information on coverage, contact the Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) who published the document. The contractor information can be found at the top of the document in the Contractor Information section (expand the section to see the details).

If you don’t find the Article you are looking for, contact your MAC.

Did you receive a Medicare coverage denial?

Was your Medicare claim denied? Here are some hints to help you find more information:

1) Check out the Beneficiary card on the MCD Search page.

2) Try using the MCD Search and enter your information in the "Enter keyword, code, or document ID" box. Your information could include a keyword or topic you're interested in; a Local Coverage Determination (LCD) policy or Article ID; or a CPT/HCPCS procedure/billing code or an ICD-10-CM diagnosis code. Try entering any of this type of information provided in your denial letter.

4) Visit Medicare.gov or call 1-800-Medicare.

It is Thursday and the weekly MCD data isn’t refreshed?

Please use the Reset Search Data function, found in the top menu under the Settings (gear) icon. If that doesn’t work please contact technical support.

Are you having technical issues with the Medicare Coverage Database (MCD)?

Technical issues include things such as a link is broken, a report fails to run, a page is not displaying correctly, a search is taking an unexpectedly long time to complete. If you are having an issue like this please contact technical support.