On November 23, 2007, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) instructed fiscal intermediaries (FIs) to turn off reason code 31999 (missing or invalid nine-digit ZIP code) until further notice. CMS has now instructed FIs to activate reason code 31999 and apply the missing or invalid nine-digit ZIP code criteria.

Effective for claims processed on or after September 1, 2008, FIs will return to providers any claim received with only a five-digit ZIP code or where the nine-digit ZIP code submitted on the claim does not match the nine-digit ZIP code in the Medicare provider master address file.

Providers receiving claims returned to providers with reason code 31999 must submit a CMS-855A Enrollment Application (version 02/08) to update the provider master address file with a valid nine-digit ZIP code. The CMS-855A (02/08) enrollment application may be mailed to:

Note: CMS issued revised CMS-855 Medicare enrollment applications in March 2008. Effective July 1, 2008, FIs will only accept the CMS-855A (02/08) version of the Medicare Enrollment Application for Institutional Providers. An electronic copy of the current CMS-855A (02/08) may be found at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/CMSForms/CMSForms/list.asp .