How to get Reimbursed for Treatment and Testing of Uninsured COVID-19 Patients

HHS has launched an online portal on April 6, 2020 for providers to submit claims for treatment and testing of COVID-19 uninsured patients. An unprecedented number of Americans have filed for unemployment claims and according to data released last Friday, the unemployment rate is at 14.5% which is highest since the great depression. Since a majority of Americans receive their health insurance from their employers, many of them have lost their health insurance along with their jobs. Besides, the COVID-19 virus does not care if you have insurance or not.

Congress understands this and they passed the Families First Coronavirus Response Act which allocated $1 billion to reimburse providers to treat uninsured patients with COVID-19. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act earmarked $100 billion in relief funds for providers, with a requirement that the funds be used to pay for the expenses of un-insured COVID-19 patients.

We do not know and when the funding for this program will run out so it is important that if you have provided COVID-19 testing or treatment for uninsured patients with COVID-19 diagnosis on or after February 4, 2020, submit your claims as soon as possible. HHRS has selected United health group as the sole administrator of the program.

Who can submit claims for COVID-19 Testing or Treatment of Un-insured patients?

Reimbursement will be made for providing services and testing of all claims with primary COVID-19 diagnosis that would generally be covered by Medicare including

1. Hospitals (In-patient)
2. Private practices (Outpatient/Ambulatory care)
3. Laboratories
4. DME
5. SNF / Long term Acute Care (LTAC)

How much payment will I receive?

Payment will be based on current Medicare rates unless otherwise specified. There is no guidance on how long the funding for the program will last.

How to submit claims for COVID-19 testing or treatment of un-insured patients

1. Visit Health Resources & Services Administration. Please read this thoroughly to understand the requirements and timeline.
2. Visit coviduninsuredclaim.linkhealth.com which is the claims reimbursement portal
3. Click on “Sign In” on the top right of the screen.
4. That will take you to the Optum ID Login page. If you already have the Optum ID, login with the same. This is the same login that you use for looking up your United healthcare claims and status. If you do not have one, create an Optum ID.
5. Once you log in,  Add your Billing Tax ID to continue.
6. Once you add the Billing TIN and setup your EFT, you will see this.
7. Click on “Upload/View Patient Roster”.
8. You can upload patients one at a time or in a batch using the CSV file. If you have a lot of patients, it is best to use the CSV file.
9. Fill out the patient information. The one with “*” asterisk are compulsory. Once you fill this out, you will get a temporary Member ID and a reference number which you can access by going back and clicking on “Patient Roster”.

* Please confirm all information on the HRSA website.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]