COBC

Medicare Case Type Definitions: Liability & No-Fault

The most important part of Medicare lien resolution occurs months (or even years) before you send payment to the MSPRC.  That most important process is reporting to the Coordination of Benefits Contractor (“COBC”).  If you report the wrong date of incident you risk wasting months of work.  If you report the wrong injuries you risk […]

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MSPRC to Offer Pre-Settlement Final Demands

The MSPRC recently announced a new option which essentially creates pre-settlement Final Demands for Medicare Liens.  From its website: New Option to Self-Calculate Your Conditional Payment Amount On February 21, 2012, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will implement an option that allows certain Medicare beneficiaries to self-calculate Medicare’s final conditional payment amount […]

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MSPRC & COBC to be Merged

The federal government has quietly announced it is looking for a new Medicare Secondary Payer Recovery Contractor (“MSPRC”) to handle Medicare liens.  The federal government has also quietly announced it is looking for a new Coordination of Benefits Contractor (“COBC”) to handle Medicare liens.  What makes these announcements more interesting is that they didn’t happen […]

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Is There a New MSPRC Contractor on Deck?

Rumors are circulating throughout the Medicare lien world that the current Medicare Secondary Recovery Contractor is being replaced.  Chickasaw Nation Industries has acted as the contractor since 2006, but its contract expires at the end of September 2011. The AAJ has also reported on these upcoming changes, including a member-wide email from AAJ President Linda […]

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The MSPRC’s New Use of Conditional Payment Notices

Medicare’s MSPRC began sending Conditional Payment Notices (“CPNs”) last year.  At that time, MSPRC representatives explained the use CPN in Town Hall Meetings.  That use has seemingly changed. What is a CPN?  It is notice given by the MSPRC that: It is aware you have settled; It may not know the settlement amount, fees, and […]

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Zaleppa v. Seiwell: Medicare Does Not Belong on Settlement Drafts

On Wednesday, November 17, 2010, the Pennsylvania Superior Court (appellate court) made a significant ruling in Medicare lien law in the Zapella v. Seiwell case.  The Court determined that including Medicare on a settlement check is contrary to Pennsylvania law.  The basic reasoning behind this decision is that doing so stands in the way of […]

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MMSEA – RRE Reporting Begins Oct. 1, 2010

President George W. Bush signed the Medicare Medicaid & SCHIP Extension Act (“MMSEA”) more than three years ago.  On October 1st, 2010, its reporting section finally goes into effect.  How will reporting change the Healthcare Lien landscape?  How will it change Personal Injury Law? The Defense Fears The MMSEA turns defendant-insurers into Responsible Reporting Entities […]

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Medicare/MSPRC Delays Reach 109 Days

Yesterday, July 14, 2010, a Medicare Secondary Payer Recovery Contractor (MSPRC) agent informed LRS that paper correspondence backlogs have reached 109 days.  Unfortunately, this is 44 days longer than the longest time quote given for any MSPRC correspondence and remains a severe detriment to Medicare lien resolution. Fortunately, Lien Resolution Services has been able to […]

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The Idiot’s Guide to Medicare Lien Resolution

Typically, Medicare liens are placed on the personal injury case of a person whose treatment is paid by Medicare.  Medicare’s agents, the COBC, MSPRC, and CMS have a right to recover funds which would not have been paid without the negligent act which harmed the plaintiff-beneficiary. If you are the Medicare beneficiary and plaintiff in […]

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Congress Reverses Medicare Payment Cuts

Last Thursday, the House voted 417-1 to reverse cuts for Medicare payments to doctors.  The Senate had already voted the same a week earlier.  According to CNN Money, the move will cost the federal treasury nearly $6.4 billion over ten years.  These cuts have been blocked four times since January. In terms of Medicare liens […]

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