What Does Your Medicare Claim Number Mean

 000-00-0000-A is an example of what a standard Medicare number looks like. Each person that signs up for Medicare is assigned his or her own personal identification number, very similar to a Social Security number. Many people do not realize the significance behind this unique number and the extent of personal information it reflects.

In most cases, your Medicare number will be very similar to your Social Security number. However, there are exceptions to that which are important to understand. If you are eligible for Medicare under someone else’s work record, then your Medicare number reflect that person’s Social Security number for a majority of the entire code.

The ending code (consisting of a letter and possibly an additional number) is what differentiates people who may be using the same Social Security number. Here is an easy break down of each possible letter code that will follow the nine-digit number:

• Code A: This code just confirms that the person is Medicare eligible based off of his or her own work history.
• Code HA: Represents a disabled worker getting Medicare benefits early.
• Code M: Refers to those who are eligible for Medicare, but not Social Security, and only have Medicare Part B only.
• Code T: Refers to those who are eligible for Medicare, but not Social Security, and have both Part A and Part B.

There are additional codes for people who are not eligible for Medicare Benefits on their own record. The following codes apply:

• Code B: Those drawing on their living spouse’s record. (B applies to a wife drawing on her husband’s record, where B1 is for a husband drawing on his wife’s.)
• Code C: This code applies to child Medicare beneficiaries. The youngest child gets C1, next youngest C2, so on and so forth.
• Code D: Illustrates those claiming Medicare based on a deceased spouse due to age. (D or D1 refer to a widow or widower over 60 years old.) Some other D codes refer to surviving divorced spouses.
• Code E: Applies to widow/widowers who are parents of qualifying children.
• Code F: This code applies to dependent parents of the worker who earned Medicare benefits.
• Code J and K: Apply to workers and spouses who become eligible for special Medicare benefits without drawing Social Security.
• Code W: Applies to disabled widows (W) and widowers (W1).

If you have any questions about your specific code, feel free to call our Benefit Specialists at Senior Financial Group (865) 777-0153. As you can see, these codes have the potential to be confusing, and our staff is well trained on understanding the possible code variations. Being able to understand these codes can be very helpful to healthcare providers in order to understand how you qualified for Medicare.