Do these 3 things before closing this tab:
1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsTo track Medicare Administrative Contractor (MAC) updates, first identify the contractor for your state and the Medicare program or claim line you use. Then subscribe to that MAC’s provider mailing list, bookmark its provider education page, and add CMS’s weekly MLN Connects newsletter. For policy or claims-processing changes that could affect billing, verify the notice against the related CMS instruction and the relevant MAC’s implementation guidance before changing your workflow.
Find the MAC that serves your state and program
A contractor assignment depends on both geography and the type of work. CMS’s MAC Websites, Secure Internet Portals, & Electronic Mailing Lists directory is the practical starting point: it organizes contractor websites, secure portals, and mailing-list links by state and line of business. Choose the route for the work you do, rather than selecting a contractor by name alone.
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- Open CMS’s current MAC Websites, Secure Internet Portals, & Electronic Mailing Lists directory.
- Find the state relevant to your claims or supplier operations.
- Select the appropriate Part A, Part B, DME, or Home Health & Hospice route.
- Follow the listed link to the contractor’s provider education site and mailing list.
A/B MACs process Part A and Part B claims for geographic jurisdictions. DME MACs handle DMEPOS claims for suppliers. Home Health and Hospice (HH+H) claims are handled by four A/B MACs, but those HH+H areas do not match the four A/B jurisdiction maps. Do not assume that the A/B contractor for a state is also the HH+H contractor.
CMS’s directory also lists organizations with specialized roles, including CEDI and the National Provider Enrollment contractors. These are not interchangeable with a claims MAC. If your organization bills through more than one program channel or contractor, identify and follow each applicable route.
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Subscribe to local MAC communications
Join the mailing list and bookmark provider education
Use the contractor link in CMS’s directory to reach the MAC provider education website. Subscribe to its electronic mailing list and save the provider education page where local bulletins, FAQs, and claims-processing notices appear. The CMS Medicare Administrative Contractor Beneficiary and Provider Communications Manual, Chapter 6, says providers must be able to subscribe to or unsubscribe from a MAC’s list through its provider education website. It also describes electronic bulletins and newsletters as a way to distribute information and update it efficiently as policy changes.
Choose all relevant channels and maintain your contact details
If a practice or supplier works with more than one MAC or program line, subscribe to each relevant list rather than relying on a single general feed. Keep the subscription email address current. Do not assume that every notice will arrive or that an email list alone covers every operational update; check the provider education page as well.
Add CMS’s national update channels
Use MLN Connects for national Fee-for-Service news
MLN Connects is CMS’s weekly newsletter for national Fee-for-Service news for providers, suppliers, billers, and coders. Subscribe to it as a complement to local MAC communications, not as a replacement: national news and jurisdiction-specific operational information serve different purposes. Its dated archive is useful when you need to find an earlier item or establish when a notice appeared. CMS’s communications manual says that when MACs transmit MLN Connects content, they supplement it with localized information.
Use MLN Matters and transmittals to verify changes
When a newsletter or MAC bulletin points to a coverage, billing, payment, or claims-processing change, follow the reference into CMS source material. CMS’s MLN Matters page explains that articles address changes and actions relevant to provider types, including certain change requests that affect MACs and claims-processing system maintainers. The page also directs readers to transmittals, which can be searched or sorted by year and keyword.
- Note the article, change request, or transmittal cited in the alert.
- Find the underlying CMS instruction and identify its effective date and the action it requires.
- Check the applicable MAC’s notice for local implementation details or operational guidance.
- Record the source and date in your internal change log before updating billing procedures.
A newsletter headline is a useful pointer, but it may not contain enough detail to support a consequential billing or workflow change. Verify the actual instruction and relevant MAC guidance.
Check local claims alerts, FAQs, and notice status
For a specific claim-processing issue, review the MAC provider education site for local bulletins and FAQs. CMS’s current communications manual calls for MACs to maintain current local FAQs and a dedicated page identifying confirmed system-related claims-processing issues, with an archive of resolved issues. Check the notice’s date and status: an issue described as resolved should not be treated as a current system problem, and an old notice may have been superseded.
Recheck contractor assignments during transitions
CMS contractor pages and assignments can change. When CMS announces a contract award or transition, check the current directory and the relevant jurisdiction page rather than relying solely on a saved contractor contact or an older map. For example, CMS reported on June 24, 2026 that Novitas Solutions received the A/B MAC Jurisdiction H award for Arkansas, Colorado, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. CMS’s Jurisdiction H page listed implementation as in progress. An award notice alone does not establish that every provider’s day-to-day contact changes immediately; follow current implementation notices for timing and instructions.
CMS’s “Who are the MACs” page includes jurisdiction information, but some downloadable maps on that page have 2023 in their filenames, and the page was last modified September 10, 2024. Prefer the live state/program directory and current linked jurisdiction pages when confirming an assignment.
Choose the right source for the question
| Source | Scope | Best use | Practical approach |
|---|---|---|---|
| MAC mailing list and provider education page | Local jurisdiction and program line | Local bulletins, FAQs, and claims-processing issues | Subscribe for every applicable line and check the notice page for dates and status. |
| CMS MLN Connects | National Fee-for-Service | Weekly national program news, claims/pricer/code items, and education | Subscribe and search the dated archive for past items. |
| MLN Matters and transmittals | National instructions and change requests | Coverage, billing, payment, and required-action detail | Search by year or keyword and follow the underlying instruction. |
| CMS MAC directory and contractor update pages | Portfolio-wide contractor context | Identifying the current contractor and tracking awards or transitions | Recheck when a contract or implementation notice appears. |
Route questions to the appropriate contact
For a specific Medicare program question, CMS advises providers to contact their MAC. Questions about MLN publications, calls or webcasts, or the MLN Connects newsletter itself have separate MLN contact routes on CMS’s MLN Contact Us page. Use the contact route that matches the issue rather than sending a local claims question to a national newsletter mailbox.
Keep a repeatable monitoring routine
- At setup: identify each state/program contractor, subscribe to every relevant MAC list, bookmark its provider education page, and subscribe to MLN Connects.
- When an alert arrives: record the publication date, affected program or claim line, effective date, and any cited CMS article, transmittal, or change request.
- Before acting: confirm the current CMS instruction and the MAC’s implementation notice, then check local FAQs or claims-issue status where relevant.
- When CMS announces a transition: revalidate saved assignments against the current directory and implementation guidance.
This layered approach is more reliable than treating any one email feed as a complete or guaranteed real-time record of every requirement.
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If you want to capture a public MAC or CMS notice page for a record, ScreenshotNeo can return a screenshot with one GET request; it is a capture tool, not an update-monitoring or notification service. For example, this saves a screenshot of a notice page:
Quick Recap
curl -G "https://api.screenshotneo.com/v1/shot" -d access_key=YOUR_API_KEY --data-urlencode url=https://www.cms.gov/medicare/coding-billing/medicare-administrative-contractors-macs -o shot.webpSee the ScreenshotNeo API documentation for request options. Its clean-shot process accepts cookie or consent banners like a visitor and removes more than 60 known consent platforms, newsletter popups, and chat widgets before capture; each step can be turned off. Bot checks or CAPTCHAs, blank pages, timeouts, failed loads, and cache hits are not billed, and responses identify the page verdict and billing status in headers. ScreenshotNeo also provides an MCP server with tools for AI agents, including take_screenshot, get_page_info, and capture_pdf. The free plan includes 1,000 shots per month with no card; paid plans start at $5 for 3,000 shots. See ScreenshotNeo for details. Sign up for 1,000 free screenshots a month with no card.
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