CMS Pub. 100-04, ch. 21, § 10.2

Occasionally programming errors will occur which cause inaccuracies on MSNs that do

not materially affect benefits. An example of a potential programming error could be one

data column writing in another data column. So long as the claims are correctly paid and

the notice is intelligible, it is not necessary to identify the impacted MSNs or reissue

them. The resources to identify and reissue all of the documents would not be justified.

In situations where MACs feel reissuance is absolutely necessary, they must work with

their regional office to identify costs involved before proceeding. When such problems

occur, MACs must take actions that will inform beneficiaries of the situation. These

actions should fall within the framework of routine operations. Such actions include, but

are not limited to, fielding calls from beneficiaries and alerting customer service

representatives of the situation and posting an alert on MACs’ Web sites. While not all

of these solutions may be possible, MACs should take the most appropriate steps to best

mitigate the potential confusion, but not incur special costs. Any communication

regarding this type of situation should convey that it was a temporary programming error,

which has been fixed, and is believed not to have affected the beneficiary’s benefits.

A beneficiary may call the MAC to request a copy of the MSN with the correct

information. In such cases, the MAC will provide one.