Following a review of IBC?s post-service professional provider appeals and
grievances processes, which focused on how providers have utilized and how IBC
has operationalized these processes, effective November 1,
2014, we will be rolling out a streamlined appeals process and
offering enhanced access to the provider grievance process, as follows:
- Billing dispute appeals. There will be two levels of
internal review for professional providers. All first-level billing disputes
must be received within 180 days of your receipt of the Statement of Remittance
(SOR)* or Provider Explanation of Benefits (Provider EOB).
- Grievances. There will be a one-level external review, as
described below, by a clinically matched specialist for professional providers.
IBC reserves the right to conduct a preliminary internal assessment.
Note: Appeals not overturned during the original assessment will
automatically be forwarded for an external, matched specialty review.
Billing dispute appeals process
IBC offers a two-level post-service billing dispute appeals process for
professional providers. For services provided to any commercial or Medicare
Advantage IBC member, providers may appeal claim denials related to general
coding and the administration of claim payment policy as billing disputes.
Examples of billing disputes include:
- bundling logic (integral, incidental, mutually exclusive claim edits);
- modifier consideration and application;
- claims adjudication settlement not consistent with the law or the terms of
the provider?s contract;
- improper administration of an IBC claim payment policy;
- claim coding (i.e., how we processed the codes in the claim vs. the
provider?s use of the codes).
The provider billing dispute appeals process does not apply to:
- utilization management determinations (e.g., claims for services considered
not medically necessary, experimental/ investigational, cosmetic);
- precertification/authorization/referral requirements;
- benefit/eligibility determinations (e.g., claims for noncovered
services);
- audit and investigations performed by the Corporate and Financial
Investigations Department;
- fee schedule concerns.
Submission of billing dispute appeal
To facilitate a first- or second-level billing dispute review, submit
inquiries to:
- Provider Billing Dispute Appeals
- P.O. Box 7930
- Philadelphia, PA 19101-7930
All first-level billing dispute appeals must be filed within 180 days of
receiving the SOR or Provider EOB and should contain all applicable medical
records, notes, and tests, along with a cover letter explaining the appeal. IBC
will process first-level appeals within 30 days of receipt of all necessary
information. A billing dispute appeal determination letter will be sent to the
provider.
If a provider disputes the first-level provider billing dispute appeal
determination, he or she may then submit a second-level provider billing
dispute appeal by sending a written request within 60 days of receipt of the
decision of the first-level provider billing dispute appeal. The appeal will be
reviewed by an internal Provider Appeals Review Board (PARB) consisting of
three members, including at least one Medical Director. The decision will then
be communicated to the provider and will include a detailed explanation. The
decision of the PARB will be the final decision of IBC.
If a member appeal, or provider appealing on behalf of the member appeal
with the members consent, is filed before or during an open provider appeal for
the same issue, the provider appeal will be closed and addressed under the
member appeal.
Provider grievance process
IBC offers a one-level post-service grievance process for professional
providers. For services provided to any commercial or Medicare Advantage IBC
member, providers may appeal claim denials related to services (i.e., those
considered not medically necessary, experimental/investigational, or cosmetic)
as grievances.
The grievance process does not apply to
- precertification/authorization/referral requirements;
- benefit/eligibility determinations (e.g., claims for noncovered
services);
- audit and investigations performed by the Corporate and Financial
Investigations Department;
- fee schedule concerns;
- billing dispute appeals.
Submission of provider grievances
To facilitate a grievance review, submit to:
- Provider Grievances
- P.O. Box 7930
- Philadelphia, PA 19101-7930
All grievances must be filed within 180 days of receiving the SOR or
Provider EOB and should contain all applicable medical records, notes, and
tests, along with a cover letter explaining the grievance. All grievances will
be processed within 60 days of receipt of all necessary information. A
preliminary review will be conducted. If the determination is to pay the claim,
a claim adjustment will be processed and a determination letter will be sent to
the provider. All other grievances will be sent to an Independent Review
Organization (IRO) for a matched specialty review. A determination letter will
be sent to the provider containing the IRO decision and detailed explanation.
The decision of the IRO is final.
If a member grievance, or provider filing on behalf of the member grievance,
is filed before or during an open provider grievance for the same issue, the
provider grievance will be closed and addressed under the member grievance.
For more information
For claim explanation, providers may call Customer Service at
1-800-ASK-BLUE.
*As of November 1, 2013, and continuing through mid-2015,
IBC is in the process of migrating its membership to a new operating platform.
Once a member has been migrated to the new platform, providers will no longer
receive the current SOR. Professional providers will receive what will be
called the Provider Explanation of Benefits (EOB). Once all members are
migrated in 2015, you will only receive the new Provider EOB.