Notifying the Provider

3.6.4 - Notifying the Provider (Rev. 13821; Issued: 06-09-26; Effective: 02-26-26; Implementation: 02-26-26) This section applies to the MACs, RACs, UPICs, and I-MEDIC, as indicated. A. General UPICs and the I-MEDIC may use Kiteworks to facilitate the secure exchange of records and information between contractors, providers/suppliers, and MACs. Kiteworks is authorized in the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) for secure file transfer and sharing functions. The UPICs and I-MEDIC, including all approved subcontractors, shall continue to ensure Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA)/FedRAMP compliance in accordance with the CMS Office of Information Technology’s (OIT) security requirements. The exchange of records and information may include, but is not limited to: • Additional Documentation Request (ADR), • Overpayment/education letters, • Post-payment medical review outcomes documentation, • Administrative actions notices, and • Statistical sample spreadsheets and methodologies. At the conclusion of postpayment review, the MACs shall send a Review Results Letter to the provider even if no overpayment determination is made. If the MACs choose to send a Review Results Letter separately from the demand letter they shall do so within the timeframes listed in PIM chapter 3, §3.3.1.1F. Likewise, the RACs shall issue a Review Results Letter for all audits as outlined in their SOW requirements. UPICs shall comply with the requirements listed below when issuing Review Results Letters. Each Review Results Letter shall include: • Identification of the provider or supplier—name, address, and NPI; • Reason for conducting the review or good cause for reopening; • A narrative description of the overpayment situation that states the specific issues involved in the overpayment as well as any recommended corrective actions; • The review determination for each claim in the sample, including a specific explanation of why any services were determined to be non-covered, or incorrectly coded and if others were payable; • A list of all individual claims that includes the actual non-covered amount, the reason for non-coverage, the denied amounts, under/overpayment amounts, the §1879 and §1870 of the Act determinations made for each specific claim, along with the amounts that will and will not be recovered from the provider or supplier; • Any information required by PIM chapter 8, §8.4 for statistical sampling for overpayment estimation reviews; • Total underpayment amounts; • Total overpayment amounts that the provider or supplier is responsible for; • Total overpayment amounts the provider or supplier is not responsible for because the provider or supplier was found to be without fault; • MACs shall include an explanation that subsequent adjustments may be made at cost settlement to reflect final settled costs; • An explanation of the procedures for recovery of overpayments including Medicare’s right to recover overpayments and charge interest on debts not repaid within 30 days (not applicable to RACs or UPICs); • The provider’s or supplier’s right to request an extended repayment schedule (not applicable to RACs or UPICs); • The MACs and UPICs shall include limitation of liability and appeals information in the provider notices; • The MACs shall include appeals information in the provider notices; • The MACs shall include the provider or supplier financial rebuttal rights under PIM chapter 3, §3.6.5; and • For MAC Review Results Letter only, a description of any additional corrective actions or follow-up activity the MAC is planning (i.e., prepayment review, re- review in 6 months). If a claim is denied through prepayment review, the MACs and UPICs are encouraged to issue a notification letter to the provider but may use a remittance notice to meet this requirement. However, if a claim is denied through postpayment review, the MAC and RAC shall notify the provider by issuing a notification letter to meet this requirement. The UPIC shall use discretion on whether to issue a notification letter. The CERT contractor is NOT required to issue provider notices for claims they deny. Instead, the CERT contractor shall communicate sufficient information to the MAC to allow the MAC to develop an appropriate provider notice. B. MACs The MACs need provide only high-level information to providers when informing them of a prepayment denial via a remittance advice. In other words, the shared system remittance advice messages are sufficient notices to the provider. However, for medical record review, the provider should be notified through the shared system, but the MAC shall retain more detailed information in an accessible location so that upon written or verbal request from the provider, the MAC can explain the specific reason the claim was denied as incorrectly coded or otherwise inappropriate. C. RACs For overpayments detected through medical record review, the RAC shall send a review results letter as indicated in the RAC SOW. In addition, the RAC shall communicate sufficient information to the MAC so that the MAC can send a remittance advice to the provider and collect the overpayment. For underpayments, the RAC shall notify the provider as indicated in the RAC SOW. In addition, the RAC shall communicate sufficient information to the MAC so that the MAC can send a remittance advice to the provider and pay back the underpayment. D. UPICs For overpayments detected through medical record review, and after coordination between the UPIC and OIG, the UPIC shall send a review results letter (the MAC sends the demand letter). In addition, the UPIC shall communicate sufficient information to the MAC so that the MAC can send a demand letter to the provider and collect the overpayment. The UPIC shall use discretion on whether to send the review results letter. E. Indicate in the Denial Notice Whether Records Were Reviewed For claims where the MAC or UPIC had sent an ADR letter and no timely response was received, they shall issue a denial and indicate in the provider denial notice, that the denial was made without reviewing the documentation because the requested documentation was not received or was not received within the allowable time frame (§1862(a) (1) of the Act). This information will be useful to the provider in deciding whether to appeal the decision. When denying the claims, contractors shall use Group Code: CO - Contractual Obligation and Claim Adjustment Reason Code (CARC) 50 - these are non-covered services because this is not deemed a “medical necessity” by the payer and Remittance Advice Remark Code (RARC) M127 - Missing patient medical record for this service. For claims where the reviewer makes a denial following medical record review, the reviewer has the discretion to indicate in the denial notice, using Group Code: CO - Contractual Obligation and Claim Adjustment Reason Code (CARC) 50 - these are non- covered services because this is not deemed a “medical necessity” by the payer that the denial was made after review of submitted documentation. This includes those claims where the provider submits documentation along with the claim and the reviewer selects that claim for review.