Rural Health Care

Applicants will learn about the E-certification process.

Electronic certification (or E-certification) allows an authorized person to send forms electronically to USAC by using a pre-determined substitute for the person's actual handwritten signature. In this case, the health care provider (HCP) Number and password will act as the person's signature, once E-certification has been enabled.

After enabling E-certification, the applicant can login with the HCP Number and password. When filling out an electronic certification form online, the applicant's signature is automatically accepted and the form is immediately sent to USAC. In the case of the Description of Services Requested and Certification Form (Form 465), the form is posted on the USAC website instantly. E-certification conveniently eliminates the steps of printing, signing, and mailing and expedites the application process by beginning the 28-day competitive bidding period immediately.

To enable E-certification, click here. After logging in, click on Enable E-certification. You will be asked a series of questions to verify your authority to sign for the health care provider and for security purposes will then be required to change your login password.

 

Qualifications for E-Certification

To qualify for E-certification, the health care provider must have successfully posted a Form 465 using the printed paper form used by first-time applicants. Filing a Form 465 through E-certification also assumes that basic information has not changed, such as HCP type, physical address, or phone number. To change this information, please mail a paper Form 465 to USAC with the new information. Changing this information may affect the maximum allowable distance (MAD) and other factors associated with calculating support and would require reprocessing by USAC.

 

E-certification Passwords

When you enable E-certification, you will be asked to change your password. This password, in conjunction with the HCP Number, will serve as the login password as well as represent your legal signature on submitted forms. For security reasons, it is imperative that your new password be kept private and confidential.

To change a password, you must first disable E-certification and then re-enable it. This is a level of security to ensure that only authorized persons can change the password.

If you have questions with the E-certification process, contact the USAC's Customer Service Support Center at 1-800-229-5476. If you believe that your password has been used fraudulently, contact Customer Service immediately to notify them of the situation and change your password.

 

Enabled E-certification

After your E-certification is enabled, you will have the option of filling out Forms 465 (Description of Requested Services), 466 (Description of Services Requested and Certification), 466-A (Internet Service Funding Request and Certification Form), or 467 (Receipt of Service Confirmation) online and submitting them directly to USAC using your electronic certification as your signature.

  • If you have enabled electronic certification and submitted a Form 465 that meets program requirements, your form will be immediately posted to the USAC website to begin the 28-day competitive bidding period. You will receive an e-mail confirming that your Form 465 was posted by USAC and reminding you of your eligible support start date, the 29th day after posting.
  • In the case of Forms 466 and 466-A, you will receive an e-mail that confirms the receipt of your form. Please remember to send any required additional documentation to USAC including copies of bids received, contracts, or bills.

Important: When the authorized holder of the password will no longer be submitting forms on behalf of a rural health care provider, that password must be disabled to avoid fraudulent use.
To enable a new password after deactivation, the new representative of the health care provider must go through the password-enabling process as if he or she were enabling electronic certification for the first time.


Last modified on 2/19/2008