Skip to main content

N151 Remark Code: Face-to-Face Contact Required First

N151 means telephone contact services will not be paid until the required face-to-face contact has taken place. The payer's rule requires an in-person contact before (or alongside) telephone services, and it did not find one.

Quick facts

Code
N151 (RARC N151)
Status
Active In use since October 31, 2002.
Code set
Remittance Advice Remark Codes (RARC)
Group codes
  • CO (Contractual Obligation): Payment is withheld as provider liability; the patient is not billed while the requirement is unmet.
Official description
Telephone contact services will not be paid until the face-to-face contact requirement has been met.
X12 Remittance Advice Remark Codes, retrieved September 25, 2026
Last verified
against the official X12 list.

What N151 means

Some programs pay for telephone contacts with patients, but only as a supplement to in-person care. N151 tells you the payer looked for a qualifying face-to-face contact for the relevant period and did not find one, so it will not pay the telephone contact yet.

It often appears with CARC B15 or a program-guideline code.

Common causes

  • The in-person contact happened but was billed after the telephone service, so it was not on file yet.
  • The face-to-face contact was provided by another provider or program the payer does not link to this claim.
  • A video visit was treated as face-to-face by the provider but not by the payer.
  • The in-person contact fell outside the time window the program requires.

What to do

  1. Check the program rules for the required timing and type of face-to-face contact.
  2. Confirm whether the contact occurred and whether it was billed and processed.
  3. Bill the face-to-face service if it is missing, then ask the payer to reprocess the telephone claim, or resubmit it if that is the payer’s process.
  4. If no contact occurred in the window, the telephone services are generally not payable.

How to prevent it

Track face-to-face contacts per patient and period in your scheduling or care management system, and hold telephone contact claims until the in-person service is billed. The authorization and referral guide covers similar prerequisite-service tracking.

Codes that may appear with N151

  • CO-B15 (This service/procedure requires that a qualifying service/procedure be received and covered.): The service requires that a qualifying service, here the face-to-face contact, be received and covered.
  • CO-272 (Coverage/program guidelines were not met.): Coverage or program guidelines were not met.
  • CO-107 (The related or qualifying claim/service was not identified on this claim.): The related or qualifying service was not identified on this claim.
  • N718 (Missing documentation of face-to-face examination.): Missing documentation of a face-to-face examination.
  • N717 (Incomplete/Invalid documentation of face-to-face examination.): Documentation of the face-to-face examination was incomplete or invalid.
  • N776 (This service is not a covered Telehealth service.): The service is not a covered telehealth service.

N151 FAQ

Where does this requirement come from?

From program or payer rules, often in case management, behavioral health, or care coordination programs that pay for telephone contacts only after an in-person contact in the same period. The payer's policy sets the details.

Does a video visit count as face-to-face?

It depends on the payer and the program. Some treat real-time video as face-to-face for these purposes; others require in-person contact. Confirm before relying on it.

Will the telephone services be paid later?

If the face-to-face contact occurs within the payer's required window and is billed, the telephone services may be payable on resubmission. Check whether the payer allows that.