1. A. No later than January 1, 2022, a carrier shall implement a process to auto-adjudicate electronically submitted prior authorization requests.

   1. (1) A carrier shall comply with all statutory timelines applicable to prior authorization review. A list of all statutory prior authorization review timelines is posted on the OSI website.
   2. (2) A carrier may reject for correction an auto-adjudicated prior authorization request for reasons other than medical necessity as long as the rejection is completed within statutory timelines.
   3. (3) A carrier may pend an auto-adjudicated prior authorization request if it requires manual review, as long as the review is completed within statutory timelines.
   4. (4) A carrier shall not automatically deny an auto-adjudicated prior authorization request. A carrier shall only deny a prior authorization request based on a live review.
2. B. Incomplete information. If a provider fails to supply sufficient information to evaluate a prior authorization request, the carrier shall allow the provider a reasonable amount of time, taking into account the circumstances of the covered person, but not less than 4 hours for expedited requests and two calendar days for standard requests, to provide the specified information.
3. C. Notice. A carrier shall provide written notice to the provider and covered person of a determination to approve or deny authorization. The Notice shall contain the reasons for a denial.
4. D. Delegation. A carrier may delegate one or more of the obligations mandated by these rules to a qualified third party, including a URO. A carrier who delegates any obligation mandated by these rules remains responsible for compliance with the delegated obligation.
5. E. Reporting. At least annually, a carrier shall report to the superintendent data and information about the auto-adjudication process, when and as directed by the superintendent.

[13.10.31.11 NMAC - N, 01/01/2022]