eStar updates and changes announced
The latest eStar updates and changes:
Updated NCPDP Guidelines
On December 10, ePrescribing changes will be made to align with new ePrescription guidelines from the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs (NCPDP). These changes are now required for Medicare Part D reimbursement.
The patient signature field in prescription order composers will now allow up 1,000 characters, which will allow for clearer explanation of medication instructions. Additionally, inpatient providers may indicate when refill requests for discharge prescriptions should be sent to the patient’s primary care provider (PCP).
Please Review Tip Sheet “Updating ePrescription Ordering in Accordance with NCPDP Guidelines” (available in Hubbl) for more information.
Medicare Subscriber ID Format
Beginning December 11, a new format is required for Medicare subscriber IDs. This change is necessary to comply with new Medicare requirements intended to better protect patient identity information.
The change will affect all staff who verify and/or load patient coverages during:
- Scheduling
- Insurance verification
- Appointment check-in
- Admitting
For subscriber IDs, Medicare has replaced the Social Security number-based Health Insurance Claim Numbers (HICN) with the new Medicare Beneficiary Number (MBI). Beginning January 1, 2020, Medicare will reject all claims using HICN subscriber ID format.
In eStar, subscriber ID edits will require the new MBI, and users will receive an error message if the subscriber ID format is incorrect.
Colleagues shouuld replace all HICN subscriber IDs with the new MBI and verify that the subscriber ID is different than the patient’s SSN. To get new the MBI, staff can:
- Ask the patient
- Use the MBI look-up tool
- Refer to remittance advice returned by December 31, 2019 (eStar will auto-update subscriber IDs for patients who have a remit prior to 12/31)
Colleagues should also make copies of new Medicare cards. Refer to CMS for more information.