The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released a notice advising that Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) recovery debts may now be paid using Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions.
CMS’s notice states in full as follows:
Effective immediately, Non-Group Health Plan (NGHP) and Group Health Plan (GHP) Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) recovery debts may be paid using Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions. This new method provides parties such as employers, plan sponsors, insurers, third party administrators, and even attorneys more convenience and efficiency by allowing payers to utilize their own existing software and accounts payable processes to submit payments electronically. Through the new option, the debtor’s bank will submit a payment through the ACH Network. Funds will then be sent by electronic funds transfer (EFT) to the Commercial Repayment Center (CRC) or Benefits Coordination & Recovery Center (BCRC) for processing.
Setting up ACH is easy but must be coordinated with the CRC or BCRC prior to attempting submission of payments. To begin sending payments using ACH, please send an email to the appropriate email address below with “ACH Set Up” in the subject line. Be sure to include a specific point of contact with your organization for the CRC or BCRC . The BCRC/CRC will reach out directly to get the process started.
For the CRC: Please submit an e-mail to CRCACHpayments@performantcorp.com
For the BCRC: Please submit an e-mail to BCRC_Finance@GDIT.com
For those NGHPs interested in this new CMS payment option, please review CMS’s instructions as stated above regarding how to set up ACH capability. In the interim, we continue to monitor CMS and MSP developments and will provide updates as warranted. Also, please do not hesitate to contact the authors to learn more about our various options to help you address Medicare conditional payment claims