What is a Medicare reassignment of benefits?

Medicare reassignment is the enrollment relationship that allows an eligible individual practitioner to reassign Medicare payment rights to an eligible group or organization.

When a practitioner works for a medical group, Medicare may require a reassignment relationship so the group can bill and receive payment for the practitioner’s covered services. The practitioner and organization must be properly enrolled, and the reassignment must be active for the relevant dates. A missing reassignment can cause claim problems even when the practitioner is individually enrolled.

• Reassignment links an individual practitioner to an organization for Medicare payment.
• Both parties must be properly enrolled.
• Dates matter when providers join or leave groups.
• Reassignment is different from commercial network affiliation.

A physician is enrolled individually in Medicare but joins a new group. Claims fail because the reassignment to the new organization is not yet active.

• Assuming individual Medicare enrollment covers every group.
• Ignoring reassignment effective dates.
• Confusing reassignment with commercial contracting.

Explain reassignment as the Medicare provider-to-group payment relationship.