CommercialAdministrativeHigh impact
March 2018
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island·RI · Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, General Practice +1 more·Provider Update
Effective date
Jan 1, 2018
We identified it
Jun 20, 2026
Summary
BCBSRI expanded web-based referral requirements to BlueCHiP Commercial and Individual BlueCHiP for Medicare products effective January 1, 2018. PCPs can now generate retroactive referrals within 90 days (extended from 30 days) and specialists must confirm referrals in the web-based tool.
Action Required
Immediately: All PCPs must use BCBSRI's web-based referral tool for BlueCHiP Commercial products and Individual BlueCHiP for Medicare plans. Specialists must confirm referrals in the web-based system within 180 days. Train staff on the updated 90-day retroactive referral capability. Verify patient eligibility through Provider Portal before specialist visits to avoid inactive member ID errors.