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N143 Remark Code: Patient Not in Hospice for Billed Dates

N143 means the patient was not in a hospice program during all or part of the service dates billed. The payer denied the dates it could not match to an active hospice election.

Quick facts

Code
N143 (RARC N143)
Status
Active In use since October 31, 2002.
Code set
Remittance Advice Remark Codes (RARC)
Group codes
  • CO (Contractual Obligation): Dates without a matching election are denied to the hospice or billing provider; they are not billed to the patient.
Official description
The patient was not in a hospice program during all or part of the service dates billed.
X12 Remittance Advice Remark Codes, retrieved September 25, 2026
Last verified
against the official X12 list.

What N143 means

A hospice can be paid only for days the patient was under its care through a valid election. N143 tells you that some or all of the dates on the claim do not line up with the election period the payer has on file.

The issue is usually one of dates: when the election began, whether it was revoked, whether the patient transferred to another hospice, or when they were discharged.

Common causes

  • The notice of election was filed late, rejected, or entered with an admission date different from the actual start of care.
  • The patient revoked the election or was discharged, and the claim continued past that date.
  • The patient transferred between hospices, and the transfer was not recorded consistently.
  • The claim’s service period covered days before the election took effect.

How to fix it

  1. Check the payer’s record of the election, including start date, benefit period, and any revocation or discharge.
  2. Compare it with your admission records and signed election statement.
  3. If the election was never accepted, correct and file it following the payer’s process, then rebill the affected dates.
  4. If the claim dates were wrong, submit an adjustment with corrected from and through dates.
  5. If the dates were outside the election, those days are not payable as hospice care.

How to prevent it

File the notice of election promptly and confirm the payer accepted it before the first claim. Record revocations, discharges, and transfers on the day they happen so claims stop at the right date.

Codes that may appear with N143

  • CO-177 (Patient has not met the required eligibility requirements.): The patient did not meet eligibility requirements for hospice on those dates.
  • CO-96 (Non-covered charge(s).): The dates are not covered because no hospice benefit was in effect.
  • CO-16 (Claim/service lacks information or has submission/billing error(s).): Election, admission, or discharge information on the claim is missing or inconsistent.
  • N912 (Our records indicate that this beneficiary did not elect hospice.): States the beneficiary did not elect hospice at all.
  • MA54 (Physician certification or election consent for hospice care not received timely.): The physician certification or election consent was not received timely.
  • N141 (The patient was not residing in a long-term care facility during all or part of the service dates billed.): The long-term care equivalent: the patient was not in the facility for the billed dates.

N143 FAQ

Why would the payer not have the election on file?

The notice of election may not have been filed or accepted yet, may have been filed with the wrong date, or may have been rejected for an error.

What if the patient revoked hospice partway through?

Days after revocation are not hospice days. Bill only through the revocation date and check that the revocation date is recorded correctly.

Does N143 affect other providers?

Other providers may see related edits when hospice dates change, since hospice status affects how their services are paid.