Appeals Procedure If Employee appeals to the Administrator, Employee or his authorized representative may submit in writing whatever issues and comments he believes to be pertinent. The Administrator shall reexamine all facts related to the appeal and make a final determination of whether the denial of benefits is justified under the circumstances. The Administrator shall advise Employee in writing of:
Appeals Process A. The Contractor’s appeal process shall, at a minimum:
Appeals Committee An Appeals Committee is hereby established composed of one member appointed by the Union, one member appointed by the Employer or by the Association, as the case may be, and a Public Member appointed by both these members.
Grievance and Appeals Unit See Section 9 for contact information. You may also contact the Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner’s Consumer Resource Program, RIREACH at 1-855-747-3224 about questions or concerns you may have. Complaints A complaint is an expression of dissatisfaction with any aspect of our operation or the quality of care you received from a healthcare provider. A complaint is not an appeal. For information about submitting an appeal, please see the Reconsiderations and Appeals section below. We encourage you to discuss any concerns or issues you may have about any aspect of your medical treatment with the healthcare provider that furnished the care. In most cases, issues can be more easily resolved if they are raised when they occur. However, if you remain dissatisfied or prefer not to take up the issue with your provider, you can call our Customer Service Department for further assistance. You may also call our Customer Service Department if you are dissatisfied with any aspect of our operation. If the concern or issue is not resolved to your satisfaction, you may file a verbal or written complaint with our Grievance and Appeals Unit. We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint or administrative appeal within ten (10) business days. The Grievance and Appeals Unit will conduct a thorough review of your complaint and respond within thirty (30) calendar days of the date it was received. The determination letter will provide you with the rationale for our response as well as information on any possible next steps available to you. When filing a complaint, please provide the following information: • your name, address, member ID number; • the date of the incident or service; • summary of the issue; • any previous contact with BCBSRI concerning the issue; • a brief description of the relief or solution you are seeking; and • additional information such as referral forms, claims, or any other documentation that you would like us to review. Please send all information to the address listed on the Contact Information section.
Administrative Appeals An administrative appeal is a request for us to reconsider a full or partial denial of payment for covered healthcare services for the following reasons: • the services were excluded from coverage; • we determined that you were not eligible for coverage; • you or your provider did not follow BCBSRI’s requirements; or • a limitation on an otherwise covered benefit exists. You are not required to file a complaint (as described above), before filing an administrative appeal. If you call our Customer Service Department, a Customer Service Representative will try to resolve your concern. If the issue is not resolved to your satisfaction, you may file a verbal or written administrative appeal with our Grievance and Appeals Unit. If you request an administrative appeal, you must do so within one hundred eighty (180) days of receiving a denial of payment for covered healthcare services. The Grievance and Appeals Unit will conduct a thorough review of your administrative appeal and respond within: • thirty (30) calendar days for a prospective review; and • sixty (60) calendar days for a retrospective review. The letter will provide you with information regarding our determination.
APPEAL ACTIONS Appeal of TMA actions under this agreement, to the extent they are allowable, will be pursuant to 32 CFR 199.10.
Expedited Appeal An Appeal of a review of continued or extended health care services, additional services rendered in the course of continued treatment, home health care services following discharge from an inpatient Hospital admission, services in which a Provider requests an immediate review, or any other urgent matter will be handled on an expedited basis. An expedited Appeal is not available for retrospective reviews. For an expedited Appeal, Your Provider will have reasonable access to the clinical peer reviewer assigned to the Appeal within one (1) business day of receipt of the request for an Appeal. Your Provider and a clinical peer reviewer may exchange information by telephone or fax. An expedited Appeal will be determined within the earlier of 72 hours of receipt of the Appeal or two
Disciplinary Appeals All forms of disciplinary action which are not appealable to the Civil Service Commission or the courts, except written or oral reprimands and Forms 475, shall be subject to review through Steps 3, 4, 5 and 6 of the grievance procedure.
Review and Appeal (a) Each Party shall establish or maintain judicial, quasi-judicial, or administrative tribunals or procedures for the purpose of the prompt review and, where warranted, correction of final administrative actions regarding matters covered by this Treaty. Such tribunals shall be impartial and independent of the office or authority entrusted with administrative enforcement and shall not have any substantial interest in the outcome of the matter.
Procedures of the Joint Committee 1. For the proper implementation of this Agreement, the Joint Committee shall meet at an appropriate level whenever necessary upon request but at least once a year. Either Party may request a meeting be held.
