Frequently asked questions about working with Availity's REST APIs

Getting started

Why do I need to create an app?

An app, or application, is the link between your organization and Availity's authentication system and API subscription plans.

When you create an application, you receive both a client ID and client secret. (Make note of both items, but especially the client secret, as this is the only time you will see it.) You must supply the client ID and client secret when you call our OAuth 2 authentication API. An authentication (bearer) token will then be returned to you which is valid for 5 minutes. Use that token to make subsequent calls to our API endpoints. See the Authentication section for more information.

What are Availity's API subscriptions, and how do I use them?

To use Availity's APIs, you must subscribe to a plan from your App. There are generally two types of subscriptions: Demo and Standard.

The Demo plan is the best starting point because it allows users to test and establish connectivity with our API endpoints, understand the flow of API calls, and generally get acquainted with our system. Availity automatically approves subscriptions to the Demo plan, which provides access to a sandbox environment and canned responses for each of the API endpoints. It does not allow for end-to-end testing or testing with any live data.

Once you have explored the Demo system, you can work with your Trading Partner Manager to set up your contract and upgrade your organization to the Standard Plan. The Standard plan gives full access to the REST APIs and data. See Getting Started for more information.

Why am I getting a 429 response code to all my API requests?

Both subscription types have two different transaction limits – a maximum allowed per second and a maximum allowed per day – as follows:

  • Demo: limited to 5 transactions per second and 500 per day
  • Standard: limited to 100 transactions per second/100,000 per day

Note: Every REST API call counts in your transaction limits, including the OAuth token call, each initial request, and subsequent polling requests.

A 429 response code indicates that you have exceeded one of these transaction limits. If you have exceeded the per-second limit, you can resume sending transactions after one second. If you have exceeded the per-day limit, you will be able to resume sending transactions at midnight EST.

Availity does not have the capability to override these limits manually on an as-needed basis. If you consistently exceed your transaction limits on the Standard plan, please contact your Availity Trading Partner Manager to discuss a solution.

What happens if I forget or lose my client secret?

Your application client secret is stored as an encrypted value, and Availity cannot retrieve the unencrypted version to tell you the value. However, you can reset the client secret for your app, which will update the stored value and return the new value to you:

  1. Click Apps in the main menu, and then click the application in question.
  2. Click the Reset link in the Client Secret section.
  3. Make a note of the new client secret displayed at the top of the page. Use this new value to authenticate going forward.

Enhanced Claim Status

What is the Sender Number/SenderID required by Florida Blue?

Some users have reported receiving the following error message when requesting Enhanced Claim Status information from the payer Florida Blue:

A sender number is needed for this function. Please obtain a check
 or EFT number from a Florida Blue payment within the past 90 days and contact
 Availity Client Services at 1-800-282-4548 for assistance.

You can request a Florida Blue Sender Number/SenderID through Availity. Call Availity Client Services (ACS) at 1-800-282-4548 and supply the following information:

  • Organization type
  • Organization name
  • Organization physical address
  • Tax ID (Ensure that this ID is associated with the Florida Blue Provider ID)
  • Best contact phone number
  • Name of the Availity user requesting the Sender ID
  • Email
  • Availity Customer ID
  • Florida Blue Provider ID
  • Florida Blue check number
  • Check amount
  • Check date
  • Pay-to address  

Payer approval typically occurs within 24-48 hours. Once approved, the SenderID will appear in View Identifiers/Organization Identifiers on the Availity Essentials portal for you to capture and use in transactions.

I'm working with the Configurations API for Enhanced Claim Status and the response indicates that the payer does not support the HIPAA_276 or the VALUE_ADD_277 subtypes. How can I request Enhanced Claim Status data from this payer?

If the payer supports the MEMBER_ID option, follow these steps for best practice:

  1. Run an Enhanced Claim Status Summary call.

    This a proprietary call that does not use the 276/277 transaction, but returns high-level claim information as well as multiple claims.

  2. Next, run an Enhanced Claim Status Detail call with the claim number returned in the MEMBER_ID summary response from Step 1.

    This a proprietary call that does not use the 276/277 transaction, but returns detailed claim information for a single claim. See the Enhanced Claim Status reference documentation for more information.