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N153 Remark Code: Missing or Invalid Room and Board Rate

N153 means the room and board rate on an institutional claim was missing, incomplete, or invalid. Payers use the daily accommodation rate to price or verify inpatient and facility stays, so the claim could not be processed correctly without it.

Quick facts

Code
N153 (RARC N153)
Status
Active In use since October 31, 2002.
Code set
Remittance Advice Remark Codes (RARC)
Group codes
  • CO (Contractual Obligation): A facility billing data error. The facility corrects the rate and resubmits; it is not billed to the patient.
Official description
Missing/incomplete/invalid room and board rate.
X12 Remittance Advice Remark Codes, retrieved September 25, 2026
Last verified
against the official X12 list.

What N153 means

On institutional claims, accommodation charges (room and board) are billed by revenue code with a daily rate and a count of days. The payer uses the rate to confirm the math and, for some contracts and programs, to price the stay. N153 tells you the rate field was blank, malformed, or inconsistent with the rest of the line.

It is a data issue on facility claims and typically pairs with CARC 16.

Common causes

  • The chargemaster lacks a rate for the accommodation revenue code, so the field was left blank.
  • The rate times the days does not equal the total charges on the line because of a mid-stay rate change or a keying error.
  • Private room or special unit days were billed under the wrong revenue code, producing a rate that does not fit.
  • Leave-of-absence days were mixed with room and board days on one line.

How to fix it

  1. Review each accommodation line for revenue code, rate, units, and total charges.
  2. Fix the rate or split the line if the rate changed during the stay, so each line has one rate.
  3. Confirm the chargemaster has current rates for each accommodation code.
  4. Submit an adjusted claim using the replacement frequency in the type of bill and the original claim number, following your payer’s institutional instructions.

How to prevent it

Build a pre-billing edit that checks rate times units against charges for every accommodation line and flags blanks. Review accommodation rates in the chargemaster whenever they change.

Codes that may appear with N153

  • CO-16 (Claim/service lacks information or has submission/billing error(s).): The claim lacks information needed for adjudication; N153 identifies the room and board rate.
  • CO-78 (Non-Covered days/Room charge adjustment.): Non-covered days or room charge adjustment, which can accompany accommodation pricing problems.
  • N147 (Long term care case mix or per diem rate cannot be determined because the patient ID number is missing, incomplete, or invalid on the assignment…): A long-term care rate could not be set because of an invalid patient ID.
  • N144 (The rate changed during the dates of service billed.): The rate changed during the billed dates of service.
  • CO-199 (Revenue code and Procedure code do not match.): The revenue code and procedure code do not match.

N153 FAQ

Where is the room and board rate reported?

On the UB-04, accommodation revenue code lines show the daily rate in form locator 44 (HCPCS/rates), with units of days in FL 46 and total charges in FL 47. On an 837I, the rate is reported with the accommodation service line.

What makes the rate invalid?

A rate that does not equal total charges divided by days, a blank rate on an accommodation line, or a rate reported on a non-accommodation line.

Does N153 apply to professional claims?

No. Room and board rates belong on institutional claims for hospitals, nursing facilities, and similar providers.