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N177 Remark Code: Claim Not Forwarded to Other Insurer

N177 is an informational alert: the payer did not forward (cross over) this claim to the patient's other insurance, because that insurer indicated no additional payment could be made on it.

Quick facts

Code
N177 (RARC N177)
Status
Active In use since February 28, 2003; last modified April 1, 2007.
Code set
Remittance Advice Remark Codes (RARC)
Group codes
  • PR (Patient Responsibility): Any remaining patient responsibility stays with the patient, since the other insurer has indicated it will not pay more.
  • OA (Other Adjustment): Used for other adjustments on the line; N177 itself only explains why no crossover took place.
Official description
Alert: We did not send this claim to patient's other insurer. They have indicated no additional payment can be made.
X12 Remittance Advice Remark Codes, retrieved September 25, 2026
Last verified
against the official X12 list.

What N177 means

Many primary payers, Medicare in particular, automatically send processed claims to a patient’s supplemental or secondary insurer. N177 tells you that step was skipped on purpose. The other insurer had indicated in advance that it would make no additional payment for this claim, so the primary did not bother forwarding it.

N177 is an alert, so it does not change what the primary paid. It usually sits alongside ordinary cost-sharing adjustments such as deductible or coinsurance.

What to do

  1. Post the primary payment and adjustments as usual.
  2. Decide whether to bill the secondary directly. If you have reason to think the other plan should contribute, send it a claim with the primary remittance.
  3. If the secondary confirms it will not pay, bill the patient for the remaining PR amounts according to your financial policy.
  4. Keep the remittance on file in case the patient questions why their secondary plan was never billed.

Because crossover behavior differs by payer and plan type, confirm with the secondary insurer rather than assuming the reason. For more background on how secondary billing breaks down, see eligibility and COB denials.

Codes that may appear with N177

  • PR-1 (Deductible Amount): Deductible applied; with N177 the balance is not expected to be picked up by the other insurer through crossover.
  • PR-2 (Coinsurance Amount): Coinsurance applied; N177 explains why the claim was not passed on for secondary payment.
  • MA18 (Alert: The claim information is also being forwarded to the patient's supplemental insurer.): The opposite message: the claim was forwarded to the supplemental insurer.
  • MA07 (Alert: The claim information has also been forwarded to Medicaid for review.): Alert that the claim information was also forwarded to Medicaid.
  • MA68 (Alert: We did not crossover this claim because the secondary insurance information on the claim was incomplete.): Crossover did not happen because the secondary insurance information was incomplete.

N177 FAQ

Do I need to do anything when I see N177?

Not for the primary claim. If you believe the other insurer should still pay, you can bill it directly with the primary remittance attached.

Why would the other insurer say it cannot pay?

Reasons vary, for example the secondary plan may not cover the service or may pay nothing after the primary allowance. The alert does not specify, so ask that insurer if it matters.

Is N177 the same as a failed crossover?

No. A failed crossover usually means the secondary data was missing or invalid. N177 means the payer chose not to forward the claim because the other insurer said no more payment would be made.