Persius/hicric huggingface dataset:
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say that Medicare may cover a drug or biological if it is safe and effective and otherwise reasonable 
and necessary. You can find this rule in the Medicare Benefit Policy Manual, Chapter 15, Section 50.4.1. 
  
Medicare rules also allow the plan to use step therapy. This is the process of beginning drug therapy for a 
medical condition with "preferred" (or more cost-effective) on-formulary drug alternative(s) and progressing to 
other drug therapies only as necessary. A plan must grant an exception to its step therapy rules if it determines 
that the requested drug is medically necessary, consistent with the prescriber's statement. The statement must 
show that the step therapy drugs: have been ineffective in treating the enrollee; or are likely to be ineffective or 
adversely affect the drug's effectiveness or patient compliance; or are likely to cause an adverse reaction or 
other harm to the enrollee.  
 
Medicare Advantage plans should ensure that new step therapy requirements do not disrupt ongoing Part B 
drug therapies for enrollees. Step therapy may only be applied to new prescriptions or administrations of Part B 
drugs for enrollees that are not actively receiving the affected medication. You can find this information at 42 
CFR Section 423.578(b)(5)(ii). 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules. The contract 
says that the Plan has step therapy requirements for certain Medicare Part B covered drugs/biologicals. 
Enrollees may be required to try a preferred drug before the Plan will approve the requested medication. You 
can find this information on page 105 of the Plan's 2020 EOC.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules state that facet joint injection techniques are used in the diagnosis and/or treatment of chronic neck 
and back pain. However, the evidence of clinical efficacy and utility has not been well-established in the 
medical literature, which is replete with non-comparable and inadequately designed studies. 
 
Indications: 
 
    - Patient must have history of at least 3 months of moderate to severe pain with functional impairment and 
pain is inadequately responsive to conservative care such as NSAIDs, acetaminophen, physical therapy (as 
tolerated). 
 
    - Pain is predominantly axial and, with the possible exception of facet joint cysts, not associated with 
radiculopathy or neurogenic claudication. 
 
    - There is no non-facet pathology that could explain the source of the patient?s pain, such as fracture, tumor, 
infection, or significant deformity. 
 
    - Clinical assessment implicates the facet joint as the putative source of pain. 
 
You can find this information in the Local Coverage Determination (LCD):  Facet Joint Injections, Medial 
Branch Blocks, and Facet Joint Radiofrequency Neurotomy (L35936). 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 

The rules say that physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT), and speech therapy (ST) services are 
covered only when they are medically reasonable and necessary. Therapy services are considered reasonable 
and necessary when: 
 
1. The services are specific and effective treatment for the patient's condition, 
 
2. The services require the skills or direct supervision of a therapist,  
 
3. The amount, frequency, and duration of the services is reasonable under accepted standards of practice, and   
 
4. The services are needed to address recovery of or improvement in function OR to establish, design, deliver, 
or carry out a maintenance program.  
 
Medicare coverage is based not on a patient's potential for improvement, but rather on the patient's need for 
skilled care. You can find these rules in the Medicare Benefit Policy Manual, Chapter 15, Section 220.2. 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say that Medicare pays only for ambulance transport. Ambulance vehicles must be designed and 
equipped to meet certain requirements. The vehicle must have emergency warning lights, sirens, 
communications equipment, a stretcher, linens, emergency medical supplies, oxygen equipment and other life-
saving equipment. The vehicle also must be staffed with two people, one of whom is certified as an emergency 
medical technician. Medicare will not pay for transport by vehicles that do not meet these requirements. You 
can find this rule at 42 CFR Section 410.41. 
 
The rules say that plans may offer a supplemental benefit to provide transport not covered by original 
Medicare. The transport offered must be used only for the enrollee's health care needs, such as transport to the 
doctor?s office. The transport must be arranged or directly provided by the health plan. The transport may not 
be used for other than health-related purposes. You can find this rule in the Medicare Managed Care Manual, 
Chapter 4, Section 30.3. 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules. The contract 
says that the Plan covers routine, non-ambulance transportation as a supplemental (extra) benefit. This benefit 
covers routine transportation for up to 12 one-way transportation trips per calendar year. You can find this 
information on page 4-63 of the Plan?s 2020 Evidence of Coverage.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say that a Medicare plan may restrict members to a network of providers as long as medically 
necessary covered care is accessible and available through this network. The rules say that the Plan must 
arrange for specialty care outside of the Plan provider network when network providers are unavailable or 
inadequate to meet a member's medical needs. You can find this rule at 42 CFR Section 422.112(a)(3). 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules. The Plan 
contract says that, with limited exceptions, members of the Plan must use network providers to get medical care 
and services. The only exceptions are emergencies, urgently needed care when the network is not available 
(generally, when the enrollee is out of the area), out-of-area dialysis services, and cases in which the Plan 
authorizes the use of out-of-network providers. You can find this information on page 1-8 of the Plan's 2020 
EOC.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules state that Continuous Glucose Monitors are covered by Medicare when all of the following coverage 
criteria (1-6) are met: 
 
1. The beneficiary has diabetes mellitus; and, 
2. The beneficiary has been using a blood glucose monitor and performing frequent (four or more times a day) 
testing; and, 
3. The beneficiary is insulin-treated with multiple (three or more) daily injections of insulin or a Medicare-
covered continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII) pump, and; 
4. The beneficiary's insulin treatment regimen requires frequent adjustment by the beneficiary on the basis of 
blood glucose monitor or continuous glucose monitor testing results; and, 
5. Within six months prior to ordering the continuous glucose monitor, the treating practitioner has an in-
person visit with the beneficiary to evaluate their diabetes control and determined that criteria (1-4) above are 
met; and,  
6. Every six months following the initial prescription of the continuous glucose monitor regimen, the treating 
practitioner has an in-person visit with the beneficiary to assess adherence to their continuous glucose monitor 
regimen and diabetes treatment plan. 
 
You can find this information in Local Coverage Determination (LCD): Glucose Monitors (L33822). 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say that definitive urine drug testing (UDT) is reasonable and necessary for the following 
circumstances: 
  
-Identify a specific substance or metabolite that is inadequately detected by a presumptive UDT screen; 
-Definitively identify specific drugs in a large family of drugs; 
-Identify a specific substance or metabolite that is not detected by presumptive UDT such as fentanyl, 
Meperidine, synthetic cannabinoids and other synthetic/analog drugs; 
-Identify drugs when a definitive concentration of a drug is needed to guide management (e.g., discontinuation 
of THC use according to a treatment plan); 
-Identify a negative, or confirm a positive, presumptive UDT result that is inconsistent with a patient's self-
report, presentation, medical history, or current prescribed pain medication plan. 
-Rule out an error as the cause of an unexpected presumptive UDT result; 
-Identify non-prescribed medication or illicit use for ongoing safe prescribing of controlled substances; and 
-Use in a differential assessment of medication efficacy, side effects, or drug-drug interactions. 
  
You can find this rule in Local Coverage Determination (LCD): Controlled Substance Monitoring and Drugs of 
Abuse Testing (L36707). 
  
The rules say that definitive UDT may be reasonable and necessary based on patient specific indications, 
including historical use, medication response, and clinical assessment, when accurate results are necessary to 
make clinical decisions. The clinician's rationale for the definitive UDT and the tests ordered must be 
documented in the patient's medical record. You can find this rule in Local Coverage Determination (LCD): 
Controlled Substance Monitoring and Drugs of Abuse Testing (L36707). 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say that Medicare will not pay for dental services. Dental services are items and services involving 
the care, treatment, filling, removal or replacement of teeth or structures directly supporting the teeth. Medicare 
defines "structures directly supporting the teeth" as the periodontium, which includes the gingivae, 
dentogingival junction, periodontal membrane, cementum of the teeth, and alveolar process. You can find this 
rule in the SSA, Section 1862(a)(12) and Medicare Benefit Policy Manual, Chapter 15, Section 150. 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules. The contract 
says that the Plan covers certain dental services as a supplemental (extra) benefit. The contract includes a list of 
the covered supplemental benefits. The unspecified preventive procedure (D1999) is not on this list and is not a 
covered supplemental benefit. You can find this information in the Plan?s 2020 dental benefits.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say that: 
 
A. Indications for surgical treatment: For example venous ligation, vein stripping and/or sclerotherapy: 
 
1. A 3-month trial of conservative therapy such as exercise, periodic leg elevation, weight loss, compressive 
therapy, and avoidance of prolonged immobility where appropriate, has failed, AND 
 
2. The patient is symptomatic and has one, or more, of the following: 
     a. Pain or burning in the extremity severe enough to impair mobility 
     b. Recurrent episodes of superficial phlebitis  
     c. Non-healing skin ulceration  
     d. Bleeding from a varicosity  
     e. Stasis dermatitis  
     f. Refractory dependent edema 
 
B. Indications for ERFA or laser ablation: 
 
In addition to the above (see A), the patient's anatomy and clinical condition are amenable to the proposed 
treatment including ALL of the following: 
 
1. Absence of aneurysm in the target segment. 
2. Maximum vein diameter of 12 mm for ERFA or 20 mm for laser ablation 
3. Absence of thrombosis or vein tortuosity, which would impair catheter advancement. 4. The absence of 
significant peripheral arterial diseases. 
 
C. Limitations for ERFA and laser ablation: 
1. ERFA and laser ablation are covered only for the treatment of symptomatic varicosities of the lesser or 
greater saphenous veins and their tributaries which have failed 3 months of conservative therapy. 
2. Intra-operative ultrasound guidance is not separately payable with ERFA, laser ablation, and sclerotherapy. 
3. The treatment of asymptomatic varicose veins, or symptomatic varicose veins without a 3-month trial of 
conservative measures, by any technique will be considered cosmetic and therefore not covered. 
4. The treatment of spider veins or superficial telangiectasis by any technique is considered cosmetic, and 
therefore not covered. 
5. Coverage is only for devices specifically FDA-approved for these procedures. 
6. One pre-operative Doppler ultrasound study or duplex scan will be covered. 
 
You can find this rule in the Local Coverage Determination (LCD): Treatment of Varicose Veins of the Lower 
Extremities (L34209) effective December 1, 2019. 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say a health plan must disclose to its enrollees in clear, accurate terms all cost-sharing information 
(such as copayments, deductibles and coinsurance). You can find this rule at 42 CFR Section 422.111(a) and 
(b). 
 
The rules say that a copayment is a fixed amount charged to an enrollee on a per-service basis. The rules say 
that coinsurance is a fixed percentage of the total amount paid for a health care service that can be charged to 
an enrollee on a per-service basis. You can find this rule at 42 CFR Section 422.2. 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules. The Plan 
contract says that enrollees must pay a $100 copayment per day for days 1-5. There is a $0 copayment per day 
for days 6-90 for inpatient hospital care. You can find this information on pages 76-77 of the Plan's 2020 
Evidence of Coverage (EOC).
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
The rules say that PVA (percutaneous vertebroplasty (PVP) or kyphoplasty (PKP)) is covered in patients with 
BOTH the following: 
1. Inclusion criteria (ALL are required):  
a. Acute* (< 6 weeks) osteoporotic VCF (T5  L5) by recent (within 30 days) advanced imaging 
(bone marrow edema on MRI or bone-scan/SPECT/CT uptake) (1-3,10,25) 
b. Symptomatic (ONE):  
i. Hospitalized with severe pain (Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) or Visual Analog Scale 
(VAS) pain score 8) (4-7) 
ii. Non-hospitalized with moderate to severe pain (NRS or VAS 5) despite optimal non-
surgical management (NSM) (10)** (ONE):  
1. Worsening pain 
2. Stable to improved pain (but NRS or VAS still &#8805;5) (with; 2 of the following):  
A. Progression of vertebral body height loss 
B. > 25% vertebral body height reduction 
C. Kyphotic deformity 
D. Severe impact of VCF on daily functioning (Roland Morris Disability 
Questionnaire (RDQ) >17) 
c. Multidisciplinary team consensus (2) (ALL are required):  
i. Referring physician (e.g., rheumatologist, endocrinologist) 
ii. Treating physician (i.e., performing the PVA) 
iii. Radiologist 
iv. Neurologist 
2. Exclusion criteria (2,5,8-10) (Can have NONE of the following):  
a. Absolute contraindication  
1. Current back pain is not primarily due to the identified acute VCF(s). 
2. Osteomyelitis, discitis or active systemic infection 
3. Pregnancy 
4. Greater than three vertebral fractures 
b. Relative contraindication  
0. Allergy to bone cement or opacification agents 
1. Coagulopathy 
2. Spinal instability 
3. Myelopathy from the fracture 
4. Neurologic deficit 
5. Neural impingement 
6. Fracture retropulsion/canal compromise 
 *at least an acute component (e.g., acute on chronic) 
**consider including pedicle periosteal infiltration (7) 
You can find this rule in the Local Coverage Determination (LCD): Percutaneous Vertebral Augmentation 
(PVA) for Osteoporotic Vertebral Compression Fracture (VCF) (L38213) effective December 16, 2019. 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say that Medicare pays only for ambulance transport. Ambulance vehicles must be designed and 
equipped to meet certain requirements. The vehicle must have emergency warning lights, sirens, 
communications equipment, a stretcher, linens, emergency medical supplies, oxygen equipment and other life-
saving equipment. The vehicle also must be staffed with two people, one of whom is certified as an emergency 
medical technician. Medicare will not pay for transport by vehicles that do not meet these requirements. You 
can find this rule at 42 CFR Section 410.41. 
 
The rules say that plans may offer a supplemental benefit to provide transport not covered by original 
Medicare. The transport offered must be used only for the enrollee's health care needs, such as transport to the 
doctor's office. The transport must be arranged or directly provided by the health plan. The transport may not 
be used for other than health-related purposes. You can find this rule in the Medicare Managed Care Manual, 
Chapter 4, Section 30.3. 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules. The contract 
says that the Plan covers routine, non-ambulance transportation as a supplemental (extra) benefit. This benefit 
covers 36 one-way transportation trips per calendar year, not to exceed 50 miles per one-way trip. You can find 
this information on page 4-65 of the Plan's 2020 Evidence of Coverage.
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say a health plan must disclose to its enrollees in clear, accurate terms all cost-sharing information 
(such as copayments, deductibles and coinsurance). You can find this rule at 42 CFR Section 422.111(a) and 
(b). 
 
The rules say that a copayment is a fixed amount charged to an enrollee on a per-service basis. The rules say 
that coinsurance is a fixed percentage of the total amount paid for a health care service that can be charged to 
an enrollee on a per-service basis. You can find this rule at 42 CFR Section 422.2. 
 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules. The Plan 
contract says that enrollees must pay $100 copay per day for days 1-5 for Inpatient hospital care. You can find 
this information on page 76 of the Plan's 2020 Evidence of Coverage (EOC).
Appeal type: unknown
Decision: unknown

The rules say that plans must pay for a medical service or item if regular Medicare would pay for it in this case. 
You can find this rule at 42 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Section 422.101. 
 
The rules say that medically necessary services are those that are reasonable and necessary for the diagnosis or 
treatment of an illness or injury. Medically necessary services include services to improve the functioning of a 
malformed body member. You can find this rule in the Social Security Act, Section 1862(a)(1)(A). 
If you want to read these Medicare rules, you can go to this website www.medicareappeal.com. 
 
The Plan contract says that the Plan covers items and services in accordance with Medicare rules.