Healthcare Acronyms

Advanced Beneficiary Notice

A standardized notice that must be issued to a Medicare beneficiary before providing certain Medicare Part B (outpatient) or Part A (limited to hospice and Religious Nonmedical Healthcare Institutions only) items or services. The ABN must be issued when:

• It is believed that Medicare may not pay for an item or service
• Medicare usually covers the item or service
• Medicare may not consider it medically reasonable and necessary for the patient in this particular instance