Last Modified: 9/5/2018
Location: FL, PR, USVI
Business: Part A, Part B
Finding LCDs and related coverage information -- how-to guide
First Coast workload numbers
MAC-Part A:
• Florida: 09101
• Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands: 09201
MAC-Part B:
• Florida: 09102
• Puerto Rico: 09202
• U.S. Virgin Islands: 09302
Table of contents
First Coast Service Option LCD search tools
CMS Medical Coverage Database (MCD)
First Coast Service Options LCD search tools
The Local Coverage Determination (LCD) search tools offer a fast, direct way for providers to search for LCDs. Providers may search by LCD ID, keyword (title only), or HCPCS code to find LCDs instantly.
Search active, future effective, draft, retired LCDs
Instructions |
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The LCD tool is available directly from the homepage, or the left navigation menu on medicare.fcso.com. To navigate, hover over LCDs/Medical Review and select Search LCDs. Note: The tertiary menu offers direct access to active, future effective, draft, or retired LCDs. |
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Click on Active LCDs to search all current LCDs. The tool automatically displays all active LCDs in table format. Providers may search within the table by: • LCD ID • Keyword (title only) • HCPCS code Note: The LCD search tools look for a direct match of what is in the results table; multiple keyword searches are not available. To search using multiple keywords, including diagnosis codes, please refer to entire site search feature below. |
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To search, enter in the criteria in the search box. All related LCDs will display. |
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Easily change the search functionality to future effective, draft, or retired LCDs by clicking on the links on the right. |
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Search the entire site by keywords or diagnosis codes
Instructions |
Related screenshots |
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Providers in need of locating LCDs by multiple keywords or diagnosis codes have a simple way to do so by using First Coast Service Options’ (First Coast) website search functionality. Simply enter keywords or HCPCS codes into the website search bar and search using the “LCDs only” filter to find the matching results. |
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All related LCDs will display on the results screen. |
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CMS Medical coverage database (MCD)
This guide will help you find Local Coverage Determinations (LCDs) and National Coverage Determinations (NCDs) by utilizing the resources available on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) website.
MCD Quick find
Instructions |
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You may search the Medicare Coverage Database on CMS.gov using the L number (LCD ID), procedure code, or keywords through the Quick Search—available in the right column on the MCD overview page. |
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To search by L number from the Quick Search: • Enter the L number (LCD ID) in the Document ID box • Click the ‘Search by ID’ button |
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To search by keyword from the Quick Search: • Select Local Coverage Documents under ‘Document type’ • Select your region • Enter the keyword in the first field labeled Enter Keyword(s) (Title Only) under ‘Select one or both’ • Click the ‘Search by type’ button. |
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To search by procedure code from the Quick Search: • Select Local Coverage Documents under ‘Document type’ • Select your region • Enter the CPT/HCPCS code in the second field labeled Enter CPT/HCPCS Code under ‘Select one or both’ • Click the ‘Search by type’ button. |
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Results • If an LCD is available, a link to the LCD will appear on the next page under LCDs. • This example displays the results when searching for procedure code 66984 in Florida. • L33808 is a link to the policy. • Upon clicking the link, users are directed to a License Agreement. • Click the ‘Accept’ button at the bottom of the page and the policy will display. |
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Searching LCDs and NCD index listings -- Active, Future, and Retired LCDs
This page provides links to filter LCDs on CMS’ website by active, future effective or in draft status. Once you select your search criteria, a list of LCDs will be displayed and sorted alphabetically by title.
Depending upon your geographic location, select the appropriate Final/Active LCD List sorted by LCD Title link, which will take you to the CMS Medical Coverage Database (MCD) specific to First Coast LCDs. For this example, we have selected the Florida Part B active LCD list sorted by LCD title.
Once you arrive on the CMS site, you have several options to change the number of LCDs shown per page as well as how the list is sorted to facilitate your search.
Tip: To view other selections - Display Retired Documents, Display Future Effective Documents, and Display Draft Documents - select the appropriate radio button under LCDs for Contractor Browser.
List of NCDs
A list of alphabetically sorted NCDs can be found in the CMS Medical Coverage Database list of NCDs. 
Advanced database search for LCDs and NCDs
Note: National and local searches may be done at the same time; however, this may be too confusing. We suggest initially selecting one or the other under Search by Document Type.
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Finding LCDs
Step 1- Select the Local Coverage Documents radio button. Once selected, additional choices will become visible. Under What document types do you want to search for?, deselect the All Articles check box to restrict your search to Final Policies.
Step 2- Enter required search criteria.
• Geographic area AND/ OR Contractor Type or Name: Choose your area and/or contractor type or name. Area is the simplest option but may also include results for contractors other than FCSO. If you prefer to restrict your results to FCSO, use the contractor drop-down list and select the appropriate First Coast Service Options Inc. Medicare administrative contractor (MAC) workload number:
• MAC-Part A:
• Florida: 09101
• Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands: 09201
• MAC-Part B:
• Florida: 09102
• Puerto Rico: 09202
• U.S. Virgin Islands: 09302
• Additional filters: Select one or more additional search criteria to filter the results. After you have made your selection, enter the requested information and select the Search By Type button. Note: The following selections are most commonly used to find LCDs.
• Checking the Keyword box will reveal a narrative box in which to type in a keyword used within the LCD you are looking for. Be sure to select the appropriate Title or Entire Document radio button, or you will be returned to the search page and will have to start over.
Checking the CPT/HCPCS and/or ICD-10 boxes will reveal additional options of entering either one code or a range of codes. We suggest using only one code unless you are sure about the range.
• Checking the Date criteria box will reveal additional options of entering a specific date or a range of dates.
• Once you have applied the search filters click the Search By Type button.
• The search results will then be displayed.
• Return to the search page by selecting the Back to Advanced Search link located in the top portion of the results page. We don’t suggest using New Search as it only allows you to search the title field and not the entire document. If you happen to land on the Search page, you can select Advanced Search from there.
Tip: When specifying multiple criteria, only records meeting ALL criteria are returned. If you select too many criteria, your search may return no results.
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Finding NCDs
Step 1- What document types do you want to search for? Select National Coverage. Once selected, additional choices will become visible; deselect all the check boxes except National Coverage Determinations (NCDs) to restrict your search to final decisions.
Step 2- Additional Filters-Optional.
• Checking the Keyword box will reveal a narrative box in which to type in a keyword used within the NCD you are looking for. Be sure to select the appropriate Title or Entire Document radio button or you will be returned to the search page and will have to start over. You may also choose Exact Phrase, All words (and), and Any Words (or) to refine the search.
• Checking the Benefit Category allows you to narrow your search further, but we do not suggest using these options unless you are familiar with them.
• Checking the Date Criteria allows you to narrow your search to only display NCDs currently in effect, a specific date or a date range.
• 3 - Search
• Once you have applied any optional search filters click the Search By Type button.
• The search results will then be displayed.
Note: Return to the search page by selecting the Back to Advanced Search link located in the top portion of the results page. We do not suggest using New Search as it only allows you to search the title field and not the entire document. If you happen to land on the Search page, you can select Advanced Search from there.
Tip: When specifying multiple criteria, only records meeting ALL criteria are returned. If you select too many criteria, your search may return no results.
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Local coverage reports – find recently updated LCDs
The CMS Medical Coverage Database Reports page contains several reports pertaining to local and national coverage. Use this page to access information about recently updated LCDs.
page contains several reports pertaining to local and national coverage. Use this page to access information about recently updated LCDs.
Under Local Coverage, choose one of the following reports:
LCD Last Updated Report -- Use this report to determine when an LCD was last updated and for what reason(s).
to determine when an LCD was last updated and for what reason(s).• Under Select contractor(s) choose Select Contractor(s) by Name and select the appropriate First Coast Service Options Inc. Medicare administrative contractor (MAC) workload number:
• MAC-Part A:
• Florida: 09101
• Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands: 09201
• MAC-Part B:
• Florida: 09102
• Puerto Rico: 09202
• U.S. Virgin Islands: 09302
• Select Reason for Change. The default selection is All but can be revised to narrow your search.
• Click the Submit button for results.
What’s New Report -- Use this report to view all Local Coverage documents that were changed as a result of a specified database update.
to view all Local Coverage documents that were changed as a result of a specified database update. • Under Select Contractor(s) choose Select Contractor(s) by Name and select First Coast Service Options, Inc. (00090 FI-FL Part A, or 00590 Carrier-FL Part B). Use the contractor drop-down list and select the appropriate First Coast Service Options Inc. Medicare administrative contractor (MAC) workload number:
• MAC-Part A:
• Florida: 09101
• Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands: 09201
• MAC-Part B:
• Florida: 09102
• Puerto Rico: 09202
• U.S. Virgin Islands: 09302
• Select Database Update. The date defaults to the most recent update to the database but can be changed as needed. The database is updated
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Download MCD datasets
Articles, LCDs, NCDs, and Public Comments for NCAs/CALs (national coverage analyses/coding analyses for labs) files in Microsoft Access 2000 database format can be downloaded.
Important: If you wish to download this data, please understand that downloading may take several hours (depending on the speed of your internet connection) and may also require 700 megabytes or more of free disk space. These downloads are not intended for casual users of the MCD; they are intended for more experienced users, such as health policy researchers.
Note: Upon entering this page, you will be required to accept the CPT and CDT disclaimer to proceed.
• From this page, users may download the following data sets: LCDs, local coverage articles, and NCDs/Public Comments for NCAs/CALs.
• The Medicare Coverage Database is usually updated each Thursday.
• Downloads are in a compressed or zipped format and can be extracted using either the WinZip or PKUNZIP utility. Most operating systems already have one of these utilities installed; however, links to download these utilities are also available on this page. If you require assistance, you can also select the Help with File Formats and Plug-Ins link located at the bottom of the page.
• Use the Data Set Downloads menu to select a radio button of your choice then click the Submit button.
The extraction tool will display the available files, which include database and CSV (comma-separated values) file formats as well as help data dictionary and read-me-first files. Only the most recent version of any NCD, article, or LCD is included in each database; attachments and historical versions are excluded.
Note: The LCDs databases contain Draft LCDs. These Draft LCDs can be identified by using the DISPLAY_ID field. For more information, please refer to the data dictionaries included with the download files.
First Coast Service Options (First Coast) strives to ensure that the information available on our provider website is accurate, detailed, and current. Therefore, this is a dynamic site and its content changes daily. It is best to access the site to ensure you have the most current information rather than printing articles or forms that may become obsolete without notice.
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