What actually matters
- Billed vs. Allowed vs. Paid: 'allowed' is the contracted amount; 'paid' is allowed minus patient responsibility and any adjustments
- CARC codes explain adjustments and denials (e.g. CO-45 contractual, CO-197 no auth); RARC codes add detail
- 'CO' means contractual (provider write-off), 'PR' means patient responsibility, 'OA'/'PI' are other adjustments — the group code matters as much as the number
- Compare the allowed amount to your contracted fee schedule, not just to zero — a paid claim below contract is a silent underpayment
- Reconcile the 835 to your posted payments so nothing is mis-posted or missed
Common questions
What is the difference between an EOB and an 835?
They carry the same information. The EOB is the human-readable explanation of benefits; the 835 (ERA) is the electronic remittance file your clearinghouse or PM system posts automatically.
What does CO-45 mean on a remittance?
CO-45 is a contractual adjustment — the difference between your billed charge and the payer's allowed amount, written off under your contract. It's normal, but if the allowed amount itself is below your contracted rate, that's a recoverable underpayment.
Where Volari fits: Volari reads every line of your 835s the way most practices never have time to — comparing paid and allowed against what you were actually owed.
See the revenue you're owed but never collected.
A free assessment shows your real recoverable number from denied and underpaid claims. No risk, paid only on what we recover.
Volari AI · answers for independent practices · all answers →