Updated September 1, 2026
Verify FirstCare eligibility in real time.
FirstCare supports electronic real-time eligibility. Send the check to payer ID 94998 and the full benefits picture comes back in seconds, before the patient sits down.
Also billed as: FirstCare Star Medicaid
Seconds
The same FirstCare check that takes 15 to 25 minutes on the phone. Ten patients tomorrow: ten checks, or three hours on hold.
2 billing names
FirstCare shows up on cards under 2 names. Every one routes to payer ID 94998, and so do 2 older payer IDs still printed on cards. No guessing which card this is.
Medicaid plans
FirstCare runs Medicaid plans in Texas. Sign in and check any patient in one click before they arrive.
From $39/mo
Per location, billed yearly. Found checks are billed once a month, $2.50 each and less as you run more. No seat fees, no processing fees.
The phone way
Call, hold, transcribe, repeat.
Verifying FirstCare by phone means a menu, a hold queue, and 15 to 25 minutes per patient while someone at the desk reads benefits back by hand. Ten patients on tomorrow's schedule is half a workday on hold.
The real-time way
Payer ID 94998, in seconds.
The same check, sent electronically. Sign in and run it for any patient in one click, and Valian flags the ones that need a human look.
| By phone | In Valian | |
|---|---|---|
| Time per patient | 15 to 25 minutes on hold | Seconds |
| When it happens | Day of, squeezed between patients | Any time before the visit, in one click |
| What you get | Notes scribbled while someone reads benefits aloud | The full breakdown, saved to the patient |
What a FirstCare eligibility check returns
- Whether coverage is active, with plan and group details
- Deductible, and how much of it is already met this year
- Annual maximum, and how much of it is left to work with
- Coverage percentages by category: preventive, basic, major
- Frequency limits on cleanings, exams, and X-rays
- Waiting periods, where FirstCare reports them electronically
Eligibility result
Sample data- Status
- Active
- Plan
- PPO · Group 8823
- Deductible
- $50 · $0 met
- Annual max
- $1,500 remaining
- Preventive
- 100%
- Basic
- 80%
- Major
- 50%
- Cleanings
- 2 / year
Returned in seconds · payer ID 94998
How practices handle this today, in their own words
Verbatim from recorded calls to dental offices. Names withheld.
We call the insurance, or I go on their website and do it. Yeah, we manually do it.
We have a third party insurance verification team that does it for us. I’m not too sure, maybe like seven, ten minutes.
Our system does it, and the ones that are not set up for electronic, we do ourselves.
How getting set up works
Book a discovery call
A 15-minute call with our team: we show you a check and size your plan. Then you sign up from the link we send you: create the account, sign the agreement, and put a card on file.
Save your carriers and codes
Pick the insurance carriers you take and the codes you check.
Run a check in one click
Sign in, pick a patient and see their coverage in seconds before the visit, FirstCare included. No hold music, no portal logins.
Under half an hour of your time all in. See how the software compares, how a real-time check works, or what outsourcing costs.
What FirstCare supports through our network
- Real-time eligibility (270/271)
- Yes, in seconds
- Enrollment for eligibility
- None, checks work day one
- Dental claims (837D)
- Not through our network
- Claim status (276/277)
- Yes
- Electronic remittance (835)
- Yes, after a one-click enrollment, typically a few weeks
- Electronic funds transfer
- Yes, after enrollment
- Claim attachments
- Not through our network
Names and IDs this payer goes by
FirstCare · FirstCare Star Medicaid. Older cards may show payer ID 1656 and 5854. All of them route to payer ID 94998.
Payer site: www.firstcare.com
How to verify FirstCare, step by step
Get the member ID and date of birth from the card or the patient.
Send the electronic eligibility request (a 270) to payer ID 94998.
Read the response (the 271): status, deductible, max, percentages, frequencies.
Save the breakdown to the patient. With Valian, all four take one click and a few seconds.
FirstCare runs Medicaid plans across Texas. Medicaid dental benefits change by state and by age, which is exactly what the check reads off the plan.
FirstCare, quick answers
Does FirstCare support real-time eligibility?
Yes. Eligibility checks to FirstCare clear electronically in seconds through payer ID 94998.
What payer ID do I use for FirstCare?
94998 for eligibility transactions. The same payer also appears on cards as FirstCare Star Medicaid.
What does a check cost with Valian?
Plans from $39 a month per location, billed yearly, or from $49 month to month. Plus $2.50 or less per check we find — $0 when we can’t find the insurance. No setup fee and no seat fees. Sign in and run each check in one click before the visit.
Does FirstCare require enrollment before I can check eligibility?
No. Eligibility checks work from day one, with no payer enrollment paperwork.
Which FirstCare plans does this cover?
FirstCare runs Medicaid plans in Texas. The eligibility check reads the specific plan on the patient's card, whichever program it belongs to.
Can I get FirstCare remittances electronically?
Yes. FirstCare sends electronic remittance advice (835) after a one-click enrollment, typically a few weeks.
What if the patient's card shows a different FirstCare name?
Alternate billing names route to the same payer ID, 94998. The same check covers them.
More questions about verifying FirstCare? Schedule 15 minutes with us and bring your toughest plan.
Check any FirstCare patient in one click, before they walk in.
Plans from $39 a month per location, billed yearly, or from $49 month to month. Plus $2.50 or less per check we find — $0 when we can’t find the insurance. No setup fee and no seat fees.
Book 15 minutes, demo or onboarding
Pick a time, then tell us on the form whether it is a demo or an onboarding call.
Other Texas dental payers
37 other payers operating in Texas also verify in real time, 13 of them with Medicaid plans.
- Aetna Better Health Texas38692
- Alignment Health PlanCCHPC
- Baylor Scott and White Health Plan88030
- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas84980
- Blue Cross Blue Shield Texas Medicaid STAR CHIPHCSV2
- Blue Shield of California100935
- Christus Health Plan LA Exchange52106
- Clover HealthCRPHP
- Community Health Choice48145
Medicaid plans in Texas: Aetna Better Health Texas, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, Blue Cross Blue Shield Texas Medicaid STAR CHIP, Blue Shield of California, Community Health Choice, Dell Children's Health Plan, and 7 more.
Related payers
Payer names and marks belong to their owners and identify the insurance company a practice can verify. Sample result shown for illustration; real results reflect the patient's actual plan. Payer capabilities can change between network updates.