N301 Remark Code: Procedure Date Missing or Invalid

What N301 means

Payers use procedure dates to confirm that services fall within coverage periods, match authorizations, and line up with the rest of the claim. N301 is the general remark for a procedure date that fails those checks. It can apply to institutional claims, where each ICD-10-PCS procedure has its own date, or to lines where the date tied to a procedure is missing or impossible.

Most payers send it with CARC 16.

Common causes

• An inpatient procedure was coded without its date in the procedure fields.
• A procedure date falls outside the admission and discharge dates of the stay.
• A date was transposed (day and month swapped) or entered in an unexpected format.
• Charges from a prior encounter were accidentally included, bringing dates that don’t fit this claim.
• An interface between the surgical or procedure system and billing dropped the date.

How to fix it

1. Identify which procedure line or code carries the problem date.
2. Check the operative report, procedure note, or order record for the actual date performed.
3. Correct the date so it falls within the claim’s service period and agrees with the documentation.
4. Remove any procedures that don’t belong on this claim.
5. Send a corrected claim with frequency code 7 and the original claim number.

How to prevent it

Pull procedure dates electronically from the clinical record rather than having coders key them. Add edits that reject any procedure dated outside the claim’s from and through dates, and any date later than the claim creation date. For institutional billing, compare coded procedure dates to the operating room log before final billing.