1. How does one read the Norco statements?
The statements show all amounts that are currently open to the customer
only. Any invoice that still has an open due amount will be listed, and
any payment that has been received, or credit that has been issued and
applied to one of the open invoices will be indicated, but does not always
show the invoice to which it has been applied. Last payment information
shows the date received and total payment. That amount may split between
current (open) invoices and invoices that are paid in full so are in the
history of the account. Comment lines may be added to amounts transferred
to customer due - "Deductible", for example. Those comment lines
are added only if information indicating such has been received from the
insurance company. Questions regarding such issues should be directed to
the insurance company.
2. What is assignment vs.
non-assignment?
Medicare claims are submitted either assigned or non-assigned. If the
claim is assigned, Norco is accepting Medicare's allowed amount as full
payment on the claim. Medicare will pay 80% of the allowed amount, leaving
20% as customer due. If there is a secondary insurance, the 20% may be
paid by that insurance. If the item indicates non-assignment, Medicare
will consider the claim and any payment or denial will go directly the
customer. Payment for the full charge is the responsibility of the
customer. Customers can refer to the Medicare Summary Benefit Notification
that is received on that item to clarify the amount due. The decision to
bill on a non-assigned basis is generally due to the reimbursement allowed
not covering Norco's cost or the criteria for coverage being vague or not
met with documentation supplied or the quantity of supplies exceeding
Medicare guidelines.
3. Have charges been billed to
Medicare/Insurance?
Contact your billing representative to check on the status of the claim.
4.Why is the customer being charged a
deductible?
Medicare and most insurances have a deductible that must be met and paid
directly to the supplier. Until that deductible has been met, no payment
will be made. Medicare Part B deductible is always $100.00 per calendar
year. Often, insurance plans will cover the Medicare deductible. Contact
the supplemental insurance company regarding the individual policy to see
if that amount will be paid. Individual insurance policies differ as to
the amount of deductible, but the basic concept of the customer paying
directly to the provider until that deductible has been paid in full
remains the same. Again, contact the individual insurance company
regarding deductible status.
5.The insurance company notified the
beneficiary that a contractual adjustment was made that wasn't reflected
in the billing. What is the amount due?
Norco is continually adding insurance contracts into the system. Once
added, the amount that is billed to the customer will show correctly.
Check the insurance explanation of benefits sent from the insurance
company. If the amounts due differ from the amounts indicated on the Norco
statement, contact your billing representative.
6. Why are the amounts on the statement
showing as my due without stating why?
Norco uses codes to indicate why a due amount is transferred from
insurance expected due to customer expected due. If the reason noted on
the statement is not clear, contact your billing representative for more
information. If there is an indication to contact your insurance company,
please do so. Call your insurance company to make sure you understand the
percentages that will be covered, or the items that might be non-covered.
7. What is the purchase price of the
equipment? When will equipment meet purchase price? What is meant by
rent-to-own?
Most equipment billed through insurance companies is billed as a rental,
with the exception of inexpensive equipment such as walkers, commodes and
canes. Norco has contractual agreements with several insurance companies,
and the purchase "allowable" is often dependant on the contract.
Contact your Norco customer service representative for that price. If an
item is considered a "rent-to-own" item, the monthly rental
allowed rate will charge until it reaches that price. For example, if the
allowable purchase on an item is $100.00, and the rental rate is $18.71
per month, the equipment will bill out 5 months at full rate (5 x 18.71 =
93.55), and the remaining $6.45 will charge on the 6th month. Once that
full purchase allowable is met, the item will transfer to customer owned.
8. Why is the date on the statement
different from the date the equipment was actually delivered?
The date that shows on the statement is the date that Norco entered the
transaction. An invoice dated 6/25/00 may be for the rental for the month
beginning 6/24/00. If insurance information is received that indicates an
additional amount due from the customer, the accounts receivable
department will transfer that due to the customer. The date of the
transfer, not the date of service, is indicated on the statement. Look at
the invoice number and match with the invoices previously sent. If the
invoices are not available, contact your billing representative.
9. Why aren't addresses and phone
numbers printed on dunning letters and purchase option letters?
Much information sent to customers is sent from the corporate office. That
office sends to customers throughout the company for all Norco branches.
We are working on ways to pull local branch phone numbers on those
documents.
10. Why doesn't the last payment amount
show as a payment on the statement?
See the answer to question #1.
11. Why is more than one statement sent
each month?
There is only one statement per month, but each also includes the invoices
that have generated since the last statement date. The statement itself
indicates "STATEMENT" at the top, and has a perforated edge to
send in with remittance. The invoices indicate "INVOICE" at the
top. The amount shown at the bottom of the remittance slip (the perforated
edge) is the total amount due from the customer for that billing.
12. How can the customer payment history
be obtained?
There is no program currently in place to simply print out the customer
payment amounts. This is an involved manual process. It is important to
keep records of payments for such purposes as taxes, budgeting, etc. If
needed, contact your billing representative for information.
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