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N731 Remark Code: Mental Health Assessment Deficient

N731 means the payer received a mental health assessment for this claim but found it incomplete or invalid. Behavioral health payers often rely on the assessment to confirm diagnosis and level of care, so the claim waits until a usable one is supplied.

Quick facts

Code
N731 (RARC N731)
Status
Active In use since November 1, 2014.
Code set
Remittance Advice Remark Codes (RARC)
Group codes
  • CO (Contractual Obligation): The provider bears the adjustment until an acceptable assessment is on file. Do not bill the patient for it.
Official description
Incomplete/Invalid mental health assessment.
X12 Remittance Advice Remark Codes, retrieved September 25, 2026
Last verified
against the official X12 list.

What N731 means

For behavioral health services, payers often use the intake or diagnostic assessment to confirm the diagnosis, the treatment plan, and whether the level of care is appropriate. N731 says the payer reviewed the assessment you supplied and could not accept it as submitted.

It generally accompanies CARC 251 or CARC 16. In some cases the payer uses CARC 50 when the assessment it received does not support the services billed.

Common causes

  • The assessment is unsigned or lacks the clinician’s credentials.
  • It predates the treatment episode by more than the payer allows, or no update was done.
  • Required elements, such as a risk assessment or diagnostic formulation, are missing.
  • The diagnosis in the assessment does not match the diagnosis on the claim.
  • Only part of a multi-section intake form was sent.

How to fix it

  1. Check the payer’s behavioral health documentation requirements or the request letter to see what failed.
  2. Pull the complete, signed assessment for the relevant episode of care.
  3. If it is out of date for the payer’s rules, ask whether an updated assessment can be accepted for the dates in question.
  4. Make sure the diagnosis in the assessment and on the claim agree; if the claim was wrong, submit a corrected claim with resubmission code 7.
  5. Resubmit through the payer’s records or reconsideration channel.

How to prevent it

Use an assessment template that maps to the requirements of your main payers, require clinician signature before billing, and set reminders for periodic reassessment where payers require it.

Codes that may appear with N731

  • CO-251 (The attachment/other documentation that was received was incomplete or deficient.): The documentation received was incomplete or deficient.
  • CO-16 (Claim/service lacks information or has submission/billing error(s).): The claim lacks information needed for adjudication, with N731 naming the assessment.
  • CO-50 (These are non-covered services because this is not deemed a 'medical necessity' by the payer.): Some payers deny for medical necessity when the assessment does not support the level of care.
  • N42 (Missing mental health assessment.): No mental health assessment was received at all.
  • N730 (Incomplete/invalid patient medical/dental record for this service.): A general incomplete medical record remark, not specific to behavioral health.
  • N768 (Incomplete/invalid initial evaluation report.): An incomplete initial evaluation report, used for other kinds of initial evaluations.

N731 FAQ

What do payers look for in a mental health assessment?

Requirements vary, but reviewers commonly expect presenting problems, relevant history, mental status findings, risk assessment, diagnosis, and a treatment recommendation, signed by a qualified clinician.

Can a progress note substitute for the assessment?

Usually not. If the payer asked for the assessment, send the assessment document itself. A progress note can supplement it but may not replace it.

Is patient privacy a concern when sending it?

Behavioral health records can carry extra protections, and substance use disorder records have their own federal rules. Send only what the payer needs and follow your privacy policies.