Medicare Beneficiary Identifier (MBI) Look-up Tool Clarification:
The Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) portal MBI look-up tool will only return an MBI if the new Medicare card has been mailed; this avoids potential confusion if the MBI is used before the beneficiary receives their new Medicare card/MBI:
Medicare is mailing new cards in phases by geographic location.
Ask your patients for their new cards when they come for care.
Use your MAC’s secure portal MBI look-up tool: Learn about and sign up for the Portal to use the tool when it is available no later than June 2018. If the new Medicare card has been mailed to your patient, you can look up their MBI if they do not have the new card when they come for care
Check your Remittance Advice (RA): Starting in October 2018 through the end of the transition period we will return MBIs on RAs when you submit claims with valid and active Health Insurance Claim Numbers.
Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) Mailing:
On June 1, RRB will mail new Medicare cards to their beneficiaries. CMS will return a message on the eligibility transaction response for every RRB patient MBI inquiry that will read, “Railroad Retirement Medicare Beneficiary.”
The new RRB card will still have the RRB logo in the upper left corner and “Railroad Retirement Board” at the bottom, but you cannot tell from looking at the MBIs if these patients are eligible for Medicare because they are railroad retirees.
www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Outreach/FFSProvPartProg/Provider-Partnership-Email-Archive-Items/2018-05-17-eNews.html#_Toc514225692
