Reminder: Digital Access to Prior Authorization and Referral Decision Letters Through Availity® Essentials

By September 8, 2026: Billing team must update internal workflows to access prior authorization and referral approval letters through Availity Essentials Provider Correspondence Viewer instead of relying on USPS delivery. All providers must ensure their Availity accounts are active and have proper payer region access configured. Out-of-area providers must add the appropriate BCBSTX payer region to their Availity profile (My Account Dashboard > Manage My Organization > Add Payer Region). If your practice prefers to continue receiving approval letters by mail, submit an opt-out request via email to Provider Education Consultants before September 8, 2026, including: NPI, Tax ID, provider name, location, and requester name. Update staff training to emphasize checking Availity Essentials for approval/denial letters rather than waiting for mail. Note: Third-party vendor authorizations will continue through existing channels and will NOT appear in Provider Correspondence Viewer. Texas Medicaid and Medicare Advantage approval letters will transition to Availity at a later date (announcement pending).