CO-300: Medical Plan Claim Forwarded to Behavioral Health Plan
CO-300 means the medical plan contractually denies the service and forwarded it to behavioral health. Wait for the behavioral health plan's determination.
What Does CO-300 Mean?
When CARC 300 appears with CO, the medical plan is contractually denying the behavioral health service and forwarding it. The provider cannot bill the patient for the medical plan denial while waiting for the behavioral health plan to adjudicate.
CARC 300 is a claim routing code indicating the medical plan received the claim, determined the service belongs under behavioral health coverage, and has automatically forwarded it to the patient's behavioral health plan for processing. This code is a forwarding confirmation, not a final denial.
This code is common in managed care arrangements where behavioral health benefits are carved out and managed by a separate entity. Many employers and health plans contract with specialty behavioral health organizations like Optum Behavioral Health, Carelon Behavioral Health, or Magellan to administer mental health and substance abuse benefits separately from medical/surgical benefits. When a provider submits a behavioral health claim to the medical plan, the medical plan recognizes the service type and routes it to the carved-out behavioral health administrator.
The distinction between CARC 300 and CARC 301 is important. CARC 300 means the medical plan has forwarded the claim to the behavioral health plan on your behalf. CARC 301 means the medical plan is telling you to submit the claim to the behavioral health plan yourself. With CARC 300, the claim should already be in the behavioral health plan's queue, but active follow-up is still recommended to ensure the forwarding was successful.
Common Causes
| Cause | Frequency |
|---|---|
| Behavioral health carve-out Patient's plan has a behavioral health carve-out where mental health and substance abuse services are managed separately from medical/surgical benefits | Most Common |
| Service classified as behavioral health Medical plan determined the service falls under behavioral health coverage based on diagnosis or procedure codes | Most Common |
| Claim submitted to wrong plan Provider submitted behavioral health services to the medical plan instead of the behavioral health plan | Common |
| Coordination of benefits routing Medical plan forwards behavioral health claims to the appropriate behavioral health insurer per COB rules | Common |
| Missing pre-authorization from correct plan Required approvals were not obtained from the behavioral health plan before service delivery | Occasional |
How to Resolve
Confirm the behavioral health plan received the forwarded claim and monitor it through adjudication.
- Track behavioral health plan processing Monitor the behavioral health plan's adjudication. Do not take any write-off action until the behavioral health plan has processed the claim.
- Post adjustments after determination Once the behavioral health plan processes the claim, post payment or adjustments accordingly.
How to Prevent CO-300
- Submit behavioral health claims directly to the carved-out behavioral health plan to avoid routing delays
- Maintain current contact information and payer IDs for all behavioral health plan administrators
General Prevention
- Identify whether the patient has a separate behavioral health plan during registration
- Verify which plan covers behavioral health services before initial claim submission
- Stay current with plan changes regarding behavioral health carve-outs
- Maintain comprehensive documentation of medical necessity for behavioral health services
Also Filed As
The same CARC 300 may appear with different Group Codes:
Related Denial Codes
Sources
- https://www.mdclarity.com/denial-code/300
- https://x12.org/codes/claim-adjustment-reason-codes
- Codes maintained by X12. Visit x12.org for official definitions.