Beneficiary Eligibility Removed from Interactive Voice Response System
To protect beneficiaries from Medicare fraud, Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) must disable beneficiary eligibility information from their Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems by March 31, 2025.
Palmetto GBA disabled IVR beneficiary eligibility information on January 31, 2025, at 7 p.m. ET. Providers are no longer be able to obtain beneficiary eligibility information via Palmetto GBA’s Interactive Voice Response (IVR) telephone system.
The most efficient way of validating beneficiary eligibility is via Palmetto GBA’s internet portal, eServices. You can utilize the eligibility tab there to quickly and easily verify a beneficiary’s eligibility. If you are not already using our provider internet portal, we encourage you to register for eServices today.
You must check your patient's eligibility using the eServices portal, billing agencies, clearinghouses, or software vendors.
Resources and Further Information
- Checking Medicare Eligibility fact sheet
- View the entire CMS instruction
- eServices User Guide (PDF)
- Direct Data Entry (DDE) User's Guide (Part A and home health and providers)