What does the letter at the end of my Medicare number stand for?
You may have noticed a letter at the end of your Medicare number and wondered what it stands for. Your Medicare Claim Number is located on your Medicare card underneath the beneficiary name. Providers use this number to provide Medicare covered services.
What do the primary letter codes in Medicare claim numbers mean?
Following are descriptions of what the primary letter codes in all Medicare Claim Numbers indicate. “A” at the end of your Medicare number indicates you are a retired wage earner and primary claimant. The numerical part of your Medicare number matches your Social Security Number.
What does the letter “B” mean on my Medicare number?
It’s important to understand that the letter codes in your Medicare number have nothing to do with enrollment in the various parts of Medicare that are also identified by a letter A, B, C, or D. In other words, it does not mean you are enrolled in Medicare Part B if your number ends with the code “B”.
What is my Medicare number?
Your Medicare number (also called Medicare Claim Number) is usually your Social Security number followed by a code. The code may only appear on your Medicare card but it is assigned by the Social Security Administration to identify the category you qualify under to claim benefits.
What do the letters on your Medicare card mean?
All “F” codes are followed by a number to signify the relationship. Code H — indicates Medicare eligibility due to disability. HA means you are a disabled claimant. HB means you are the wife of a disabled claimant. HC means you are the child of a disabled claimant.
What does the B mean after the Medicare number?
Code B. “B” by itself means you are the wife of the primary claimant, and are at least 62 years old. Other Medicare suffixes in the “B” category include: B1 for the husband (62 years or older) of a primary claimant.
What does Medicare numbers start with?
On a Medicare card, an MBI will appear similar to this: 1EG4-TE5-MK73. The second, fifth, eighth, and ninth characters are always letters while the first, fourth, seventh, tenth, and eleventh characters are always numbers. You can visit cms.gov for more information on the format of an MBI.
Do Medicare numbers have letters?
MBIs are numbers and upper-case letters. We use numbers 1-9 and all letters from A to Z, except for S, L, O, I, B, and Z. If you use lowercase letters, our system will convert them to uppercase letters.
What does the letter D mean after a Social Security number?
As this seems to be a common question, I thought that a blog post on the subject might be appropriate....What Do The Letters After A Social Security Or Medicare Number Mean?CodeIdentificationDAged Widow, age 60 or overD1Aged widower, age 60 or overD2Aged widow (2nd claimant)D3Aged widower (2nd claimant)30 more rows•Jul 10, 2010
What is Medicare Part A and B mean?
Part A provides inpatient/hospital coverage. Part B provides outpatient/medical coverage. Part C offers an alternate way to receive your Medicare benefits (see below for more information). Part D provides prescription drug coverage.
What is the format of the new Medicare numbers?
MBIs are numbers and upper-case letters. We'll use numbers 0-9 and all letters from A to Z, except for S, L, O, I, B, and Z. This will help the characters be easier to read. If you use lowercase letters, our system will convert them to uppercase letters.
What is 11 digit Medicare number?
A complete Medicare number requires 11 digits in total. This includes your 10-digit Medicare number on your card followed by the unique reference number that appears next to your name. Please take extra care when entering you Medicare Number, it is extremely important to ensure it is 100% correct.
How many letters are in a Medicare number?
11 charactersWhat do the letters on your Medicare card mean? The Medicare number displayed on your red, white and blue Medicare card (known as an MBI, or Medicare Beneficiary Identifier) is 11 characters long: The 2nd, 5th, 8th and 9th characters are always a letter, and the 3rd and 6th characters are sometimes a letter.
How do Medicare numbers look like?
MBI will contain Numbers and letters (Uppercase), that will use 0 to 9 numbers and all letters from A to Z, they have excluded S,L,O,I,B and Z so that will help all characters to easier to read. The MBI's 2nd, 5th, 8th, and 9th characters will always be a letter. Characters 1, 4, 7, 10, and 11 will always be a number.
What do the letters after a Social Security number mean?
What do the letters after a Social Security or Medicare number mean? The Social Security number followed by one of these codes is often referred to as a claim number. We assign these codes once you apply for benefits.
What is the claim number for Medicare?
These letter codes may appear on correspondence you receive from Social Security or on your Medicare card. They will never appear on a Social Security card. For example, if the wage earner applying for benefits and your number is 123-45-6789, then your claim number is 123-45-6789 A . This number will also be used as your Medicare claim number, ...
How many digits are in Medicare?
The first nine digits of your medicare number should look familiar to you. Most times, they match your social security number. However, there are some cases where it will be the SSN of your spouse, parent or child instead.
Where is my Medicare claim number?
Your Medicare Claim Number is located on your Medicare card underneath the beneficiary name. Providers use this number to provide Medicare covered services. It is also the number you will provide to the Social Security Administration when discussing your Medicare account and terms. The first nine digits of your medicare number should look familiar ...
What is the Medicare code for a wife?
These codes indicate Medicare eligibility. For example, assume you are the wife (62 years or older) of the primary claimant, and your husband’s SSN is 555-55-5555. Your Medicare number would be 555-55-5555-B.
What is the Medicare code for primary beneficiary?
Relationships to the Primary Beneficiary Codes. The most common code is code “A”. This simply means you are the primary claimant who has become eligible for Medicare through paying into the Medicare system for over 40 quarters.
What is the code for Medicare if you are married?
If you are married to or divorced from the living primary claimant, Code “B” will appear on your card. Their SSN will be the first nine digits on your Medicare card.
What does HC mean in Medicare?
“HA” will appear for the disabled claimant, while HB means you are the wife of a disabled claimant (62 or over). “HC” is for the child of a disabled claimant .
What does the M1 suffix mean on Medicare?
If a person is not eligible for Part B coverage but not Part A, Code “M” will appear on their card. If you are eligible for Part A but have refused it, the “M1” suffix will appear. Medicare Claim Numbers ending in “T” mean you are eligible for for Medicare Part A, but not for retirement benefits. This could be because you suffer from chronic kidney ...
What is the C code for Medicare?
Code C – this category applies to child Medicare beneficiaries. Numerical suffixes following “C” indicate the child’s relationship to the primary claimant. The youngest child gets code C1, the next youngest gets C2, and so on through C9 and then from CA to CZ.
When did Obama end Medicare cards?
President Obama signed a bill in 2015 that will end the use of these numbers on Medicare cards. Medicare has four years to start issuing cards with new identifiers.
What is a J and K code?
Codes J & K – these categories are for workers and spouses respectively who become eligible for special Medicare benefits without drawing Social Security. Varying codes apply depending on whether the worker has enough quarters of employment to earn Part A coverage or if they have to pay for it separately.
What is a W1 card?
W is for widows and W1 is for widowers, while those who’ve been previously married may have different W‑category codes. Most retiree’s Medicare cards currently begin with their Social Security number, which is the most valuable piece of information for an identity thief.
What is the code for widows?
Code E – this category applies to widows and widowers who are also parents of qualifying children. “E” is a particularly complicated category given the many variations.
What does the number portion of a spouse's Social Security number mean?
The number portion could be your spouse’s Social Security number to indicate you qualify for benefits because of your relationship to them. The nature of your eligibility is then indicated by the letter code that follows.
Does Medicare card have a letter code?
Letter codes following the Social Security number on Medicare cards do not indicate the type of insurance.
What letters do you not use on Medicare claim number?
Your Medicare claim number does not use the letters S, L, O, I, B or Z, to avoid confusion.
What is the Medicare claim number?
That means your Medicare claim number is the same as the 11-character series of numbers and letters on the front of your red, white and blue Medicare card.
Why did Medicare send out new cards?
To help remedy the problem of Medicare fraud, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) sent new Medicare cards to all beneficiaries in 2018. On the new cards, the Social Security number was replaced by the Medicare claim number to help better protect the identity of each beneficiary and make it harder for someone to commit fraud.
What is a CMS-1490S?
If for some reason you must file a Medicare claim yourself, you must complete the Patient Request for Medical Payment (CMS-1490S) along with an itemized bill for your services or items and a letter detailing the reason for filing the claim yourself.
How long does it take to track Medicare claims?
Once your claim is filed, you may track it online in your MyMedicare.gov account within 24 hours of filing. You will also receive a Medicare Summary Notice in the mail every three months detailing all your claims for that period.
Do you have to file a claim on your own with Medicare?
Medicare beneficiaries generally do not have to file claims on their own. When you receive care, your health care provider will take your Medicare card and use the claim number on the front of your card to file a claim on your behalf. According to Medicare rules, health care providers have one year from the date of service to file a claim.
Does Medicare use Social Security numbers?
Medicare once used a beneficiary’s Social Security number to file claims. But the Medicare program loses billions of dollars to fraud every year, and using a person’s Social Security number makes it easier for people who commit fraud to steal identities and abuse Medicare benefits.
What does the A on Medicare number mean?
“A” at the end of your Medicare number indicates you are a retired wage earner and primary claimant. The numerical part of your Medicare number matches your Social Security Number.
How to contact Medicare for letter code?
For further information about Medicare letter codes and other Medicare symbols, you can contact the Medicare Administration toll-free at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4277). For information about Medicare supplement insurance, Medicare Advantage, and all your best healthcare options, contact MedicareMall today! © 2013 MedicareMall.com.
What does the suffix A mean on Medicare?
Besides the letter A, which indicates you are a primary claimant who has paid into the Medicare system as a wage earner, there are 33 other common codes that appear at the end of Medicare Claim Numbers to identify the nature of eligibility.
What does HA code mean?
Code H. “H” indicates Medicare eligibility is due to disability. HA means you are a disabled claimant, HB means you are the wife of a disabled claimant, and HC means you are the child of a disabled claimant. If your Medicare number includes the HA code, your Social Security appears in your Medicare number. If your Medicare number includes the HB ...
What is the HA code on my Medicare card?
If your Medicare number includes the HA code, your Social Security appears in your Medicare number. If your Medicare number includes the HB or HC code, your disabled spouse’s or parent’s Social Security number represents the first nine digits of your Medicare number.
How many digits should be in a Medicare claim?
The first nine digits of a Medicare Claim Number should match the nine digits of the cardholder’s Social Security Number or, often, the nine digits of the cardholder’s spouse’s, parent’s, or child’s Social Security Number. Whether the nine digits of your Medicare number match your Social Security Number or another person’s Social Security Number ...
What does the suffix "E" mean in a divorce?
“E” by itself indicates you are the widowed mother of a primary claimant. Other suffixes in the “E” category include E1 for the surviving divorced mother of a primary claimant; E2 for the second widowed mother of a primary claimant ; E3 for the second divorced mother of the primary claimant; E4 for the primary claimant’s widowed father; and E5 for the primary claimant’s surviving divorced father.