H-Link electronic claims system

Overview

H-Link is an easy, fast, efficient way for health providers to do online business with the Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan (AHCIP). H-Link is free to use. Claims are sent to the AHCIP office by accredited submitters who are approved to use H-Link.

All business arrangements must have an accredited submitter attached to them in order for claims to be submitted for payment.

• Read more in the Physician’s Resource Guide

Apply for H-Link

If you are a new physician or setting up your own practice, you must decide if you will submit your claims through an existing submitter or if you want to become your own submitter and use H-Link.

If you want to be your own submitter, complete the Application form for accredited H-Link submitter role, form AHC2210 (PDF, 135 KB)

If you are joining an existing business arrangement, the submitter for that business arrangement will handle your claims.

You and your submitter need to complete the Business Arrangement and Relationships Application, form AHC11236, (PDF, 225 KB) with registration type as Submitter/Client.

Once approved, accredited submitters must follow the Electronic Claims Submission Specifications Manual.

Key fobs

If you or your submitter are not using secure file transfer protocol for claim submissions, you will need a key fob in order to log on to H-Link.

To get a fob, you need to complete 2 additional forms:

• AHC2208, Access Administrator (PDF, 240 KB)
• AHC2209, External User Request (PDF, 240 KB)

Accreditation benefits

Accreditation as a submitter allows you to:

• send and retrieve claim files from the AHCIP
• send specific types of transactions to the AHCIP office for processing
• retrieve batch submission results, assessment results details, bulletins and other data electronically from the AHCIP

Accredited submitters are responsible for data verification, billing and reconciliation software, and any hardware needed.

There are no minimum number of transactions required in order to use H-Link.

Software and hardware

Software

• Internet Explorer 10 or greater
• Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1 or Windows 10
  • Not recommended for Windows Home versions or Mac Emulation
• for claims transmission, claims billing software is required

Hardware minimum

• i5-2400 3.0 GHz computer with Windows 7 Professional
• 4.0 GB RAM
• high speed Internet connection

Claims billing software

You can use your own billing software. Approval from the ministry is not required nor support given for your software.

• All files sent to the AHCIP office must be in the required format.
• Learn more in the Electronic Claims Submission Specifications Manual.

Test your H-Link connection

Approved submitters receive a submitter package including the user manual, log on information and a key fob, if needed.

The accreditation process is complete after connectivity testing has been successful.

Submitters using a vendor who has compliant software are not required to system test.

Passwords

Portal passwords expire every 90 days and must follow current password rules.

For help with your identity access management password, contact the IBM help desk at 1-877-931-1638.

Contact

Connect with the IBM help desk:

Phone: 1-877-931-1638

Connect with H-Link application support:

Hours: 8:15 am to 4:30 pm (open Monday to Friday, closed statutory holidays)
Phone: 780-644-7643
Toll free: 310-0000 before the phone number (in Alberta)
Email: [email protected]

Address:
Alberta Health
H-Link Administration
Information Technology and Operations Branch
Box 1360
Edmonton, Alberta  T5J 2N3