POS 14: group home.

What CMS says POS 14 means

A residence, with shared living areas, where clients receive supervision and other services such as social and/or behavioral services, custodial service, and minimal services (e.g., medication administration).

Code name: Group Home. CMS lists it as effective October 1, 2003, revised April 1, 2004. Source: CMS Place of Service Codes for Professional Claims, retrieved 2026-11-02.

How POS 14 differs from the settings around it

• POS 12, home: a private residence, not a hospital or other facility.
• POS 13, assisted living facility: self-contained living units with on-site support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• POS 33, custodial care facility: room, board and personal assistance, generally long term, with no medical component.
• POS 32, nursing facility: skilled nursing and health-related care above the level of custodial care.

The distinguishing words

The CMS wording for 14 is built around a residence with shared living areas and supervision, with "minimal services". The wording for 13 is built around self-contained living units and 24/7 on-site support. If clients share a household and receive supervision and minimal services, the CMS description of 14 fits. If each resident has a self-contained unit and the facility provides around-the-clock support, 13 fits. If neither wording matches, ask the residence operator how it is licensed and classified.

Coverage points that often come up

The place of service code does not decide coverage. Original Medicare excludes custodial care in 42 CFR 411.15(g), defined there as any care that does not meet the requirements for coverage as SNF care. A professional service to a resident is billed on its own merits. If the claim comes back as a non-covered charge, read the remark code and see CARC 96.

What to check before you submit

• Match the setting to the CMS wording for 14 versus 12, 13 and 33.
• CMS tells billers to check each payer for its reimbursement policy for each code. Confirm how the payer treats POS 14 for the service you bill.
• If the POS was wrong, correct and resubmit as the payer directs. For Medicare, a party may request reopening within 1 year for any reason (42 CFR 405.980(c)).

Worked example (hypothetical)

A nurse practitioner visits clients in a supervised shared residence where staff provide social and behavioral support and give medication reminders. The setting matches the CMS description of POS 14. A visit to a client who lives alone in an apartment is POS 12.

Sources

• CMS: Place of Service Codes for Professional Claims — code names and descriptions (retrieved 2026-11-02)
• eCFR: 42 CFR 411.15 (particular services excluded from coverage) — regulation text as of the eCFR issue dated 2026-10-29, retrieved 2026-11-02
• eCFR: 42 CFR 405.980 — regulation text as of the eCFR issue dated 2026-10-29, retrieved 2026-11-02

Every code description and rule above was retrieved from these pages on November 2, 2026. X12 code text is copyrighted by X12 and quoted only for the codes explained here; the complete lists are at x12.org. Payers revise code lists, contracts and policies, so confirm anything that affects a claim or a deadline with the payer.