How do I bill secondary insurance? (2025)

How do I bill secondary insurance?

After the primary insurance processes the claim, note the allowable amount, the patient responsibility and any adjustments. Submit the claim to the secondary insurance. Make sure to include the original claim amount, how much the primary insurance paid and reasons why they didn't pay the entire claim.

How does billing work with 2 insurances?

Your primary insurance will typically be billed first unless there is a rule under your Coordination of Benefits provision that decides which insurance pays first. Once your primary insurance has done its part, you can then send the bill on to your secondary insurance.

When should a biller bill secondary insurance?

If the primary insurer has paid their portion of the bill and there's still a balance, you should submit the claim to the secondary insurance company before billing the patient.

How does a secondary insurance work?

The insurance that pays first (primary payer) pays up to the limits of its coverage. The one that pays second (secondary payer) only pays if there are costs the primary insurer didn't cover. The secondary payer (which may be Medicare) may not pay all the remaining costs.

How to bill a secondary insurance on cms 1500?

How does primary and secondary insurance billing work?

Primary insurance pays first for your medical bills. Secondary insurance pays after your primary insurance. Usually, secondary insurance pays some or all of the costs left after the primary insurer has paid (e.g., deductibles, copayments, coinsurances).

How do you determine which insurance is primary and which is secondary?

To determine which plan is primary, which means the insurer pays for covered services first according to the benefits provided by the plan. The other insurer pays secondary, which means it pays the remaining unpaid balance according to the benefits provided by its plan.

What is the secondary payer rule?

Medicare Secondary Payer (MSP) is the term used by Medicare when Medicare is not responsible for paying first. In other words, any “liability insurance policy or plan,” which includes self-insured plans, must be billed first, prior to any claim presented to Medicare.

How do you determine which insurance is primary?

The insurance that pays first is called the primary payer. The primary payer pays up to the limits of its coverage. The insurance that pays second is called the secondary payer. The secondary payer only pays if there are costs the primary insurer didn't cover.

What happens if secondary insurance pays more than primary?

A credit balance results when the secondary payer allows and pays a higher amount than the primary insurance carrier. This credit balance is not actually an overpayment. The amount contractually adjusted off from the primary insurance carrier was more than needed, based on the secondary insurance carrier's payment.

Is there a downside to having a secondary insurance?

There are drawbacks to consider too. The secondary plan may not pay all the costs left uncovered by your primary plan. And, you may have more paperwork and headaches dealing with two plans rather than one. You'll have to notify each insurer about the other.

Why is it good to have secondary insurance?

Secondary insurance plans work along with your primary medical plan to help cover gaps in cost, services, or both. Supplemental health plans like vision, dental, and cancer insurance can provide coverage for care and services not typically covered under your medical plan.

Is secondary insurance worth it?

Multiple plans can offset more costs, increasing your savings when receiving healthcare. For example, your primary insurance might only cover 80% of a specific procedure. If your secondary insurance covers the rest, you bear no cost.

How do I submit a secondary claim with 1500?

Generate a new CMS 1500 claim form for the same date of service including all services that were shown on the original primary claim. Complete boxes 9, 9a, 9d, and 11d. Note: Boxes 9, 9a, 9d, and 11d must be completed on BOTH the primary and secondary claim form.

How does secondary insurance work with deductibles?

No, you can't use a second health insurance plan to pay for a primary plan's deductible, copay or coinsurance. The second plan instead picks up its portion of the health insurance claim after the primary insurer pays its portion.

What information do you send to an insurance company when billing a secondary claim?

Does Medicare automatically bill secondary insurance?

Medicare doesn't automatically know if you have other coverage. But your insurers must report to Medicare when they're the primary payer on your medical claims. In some situations, your healthcare provider, employer or insurer may ask questions about your current coverage and report that information to Medicare.

How do I bill Medicare as a secondary payer?

If the disabled person still has insurance from an employer or from a working spouse's employer, Medicare is secondary if the employer has at least 100 employees, but primary if it has fewer. When Medicare is secondary, the primary insurer should always be billed first.

How does Medicare calculate secondary payment?

How is primary and secondary insurance determined with spouse?

For spouses with dual health insurance, insurance companies use Coordination of Benefits (COB) to determine which plan is the primary insurance and which is the secondary.

What is secondary insurance called?

Your secondary health insurance can be another medical plan, such as through your spouse. More often, it's a different type of plan you've purchased to extend your coverage. In that case, you may hear it referred to as voluntary or supplemental coverage .

How to determine primary and secondary insurance with same subscriber?

The plan that covers a person other than a dependent, for example, as an Employee, Retiree, member or subscriber is the primary plan that pays first; and the plan that covers the same person as a dependent is the secondary plan that pays second.

What is a secondary claim in medical billing?

Once the primary payer covers its portion of the claim, secondary insurance pays a portion. Oftentimes a patient has a second plan because they are employed but also have a government plan like Medicare, Medicaid or TRICARE. Sometimes the second plan is from a spouse or a parent with insurance.

When a patient has a primary and secondary insurance and both are to be billed for a specific claim?

When a patient has both primary and secondary insurance, and both are to be billed for a specific claim, this is called "coordination of benefits" (COB). The COB process determines which insurance plan is responsible for paying the first, second, and any remaining balances.

How is payer mix determined?

To calculate Payer Mix, the total revenue received from each payer type (such as Medicare, Medicaid, commercial insurance, self-pay, etc.) is divided by the total revenue received from all payer types.