UB-04 Patient Control Number

What matters most

Choose the number from the facility's established patient/account system rather than inventing a one-off value during claim entry.
An internal patient-control number serves a different purpose from member IDs, Medicare identifiers, claim-control numbers assigned by a payer, or medical-record numbers.
A reliable control number can help staff match remittances, correspondence, corrected claims, and archived print copies back to the originating account.

Use a stable internal identifier

Choose the number from the facility's established patient/account system rather than inventing a one-off value during claim entry.

Keep it distinct from payer identifiers

An internal patient-control number serves a different purpose from member IDs, Medicare identifiers, claim-control numbers assigned by a payer, or medical-record numbers.

Use it for reconciliation

A reliable control number can help staff match remittances, correspondence, corrected claims, and archived print copies back to the originating account.

Institutional-claim review

Use a stable internal patient/account control number that staff can trace back to the facility record.
Do not confuse the facility’s control number with a payer claim number or member identifier.
Keep the control number consistent on corrected or follow-up work so reconciliation is easier.

Sources and verification

Use the CMS institutional-claim sources below for current CMS-1450/UB-04 guidance, then apply the payer’s rules for the facility claim.

Related guides

Try UB-04 software

For offices that prepare institutional paper claims, MedClaimSoftware’s dedicated UB-04 / CMS-1450 program can save and retrieve claims, support printing and alignment, and keep facility claim preparation in a focused Windows workflow. The software is $99/year for up to 2 computers, with a free downloadable trial. View UB-04 software.