UnitedHealthcare prior authorization fax number (2026)

The fax number on UnitedHealthcare's prior authorization page is 855-352-1206, and the page limits it to commercial plans in Massachusetts, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas. Every other route on that page is online or by phone: the provider portal, EDI and Provider Services at 877-842-3210. UnitedHealthcare began retiring its medical prior authorization fax lines on January 1, 2019.

Which UnitedHealthcare plans can use the fax line?

The prior authorization page lists four ways to submit a request: the Prior Authorization and Notification tool in the provider portal, EDI, a Provider Services call and a fax. The same list covers advance notifications and admission notifications. Only the fax carries a plan limit. The page calls it "only available for the following commercial plans" and then names the four states, so the list ends there.

UnitedHealthcare sorts its requirement lists into Commercial, Medicare Advantage, Community Plan (Medicaid) and Individual Exchange. The fax line belongs to the first group, in four states. The page names no fax line for a Medicare Advantage or Individual Exchange member, and Community Plan requirements sit on a separate page for each state.

Which route fits a UnitedHealthcare request?

The two list numbers come from UnitedHealthcare's Commercial requirements list, the first of eight on the Commercial tab of its requirements page. Surest, Mid-Atlantic Health Plans, Oxford Health Plans, UnitedHealthcare Complete, UnitedHealthcare West, Neighborhood Health Partnership and UnitedHealthcare of the River Valley each have a list of their own.

The Commercial list opens by naming two ways to submit a request: online through the tool, or by chat at any hour. Cardiology, oncology, radiology, genetic and molecular testing and gastroenterology have their own requirement pages, linked from the prior authorization page.

When did UnitedHealthcare retire its prior authorization fax numbers?

In six steps during 2019. UnitedHealthcare's own retirement page, archived on August 16, 2023, lists 54 retired numbers under six dates: January 1, May 6, July 1, August 5, September 3 and October 1, 2019. It tells offices to use the Prior Authorization and Notification tool instead. The California Medical Association reported on September 11, 2018 that UnitedHealthcare's September 2018 Network Bulletin set January 1, 2019 for the first retirements. Offices unable to use the tool could keep calling Provider Services at 877-842-3210, the number the prior authorization page lists today.

The retirement page kept lines in ten states for named plan types because of state requirements. Its commercial entries were Massachusetts, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas, the four states on today's prior authorization page. It sent offices to UHCprovider.com/priorauth for the dedicated number, and that address still opens the prior authorization page.

What changed on October 1, 2026?

UnitedHealthcare's September 1, 2026 notice says it is eliminating 30% of its prior authorization requirements beginning October 1, 2026 for commercial, Medicare Advantage, Community Plan, Individual Exchange and Oxford plans. The commercial code list names the CPT codes that stop needing prior authorization that day and sends offices to the portal tool for plan-specific exceptions. UnitedHealth Group's May 5, 2026 release says prior authorization applies to 2% of UnitedHealthcare medical services and that an additional 30% of the remaining authorizations will go by the end of 2026.

None of the three documents mentions fax. UnitedHealthcare's requirements page says to check by member in the provider portal for the most accurate answer on whether a request is needed, so check there before faxing.

Where do medication and behavioral health requests go?

The prior authorization page prints no fax number for medications. Its pharmacy section links clinical pharmacy requirements, drug lists and forms for Community Plan prescribers. The commercial list says to call 800-711-4555 when prescribing a medication that needs prior authorization, and it adds a fax line for specialty medication requests, 877-342-4596.

UnitedHealthcare's clinical pharmacy page names 800-711-4555 as the OptumRx Prior Authorization department, and its Contact us page lists the same number for commercial and Medicare Advantage plans beside OptumRx fax lines for non-specialty and specialty medications. For a commercial or Medicare Advantage patient, call 800-711-4555 to confirm the line before faxing a medication request.

The commercial list prints no fax number for behavioral health. For the codes that need prior authorization it tells offices to call the number on the member's ID card.

How do I send the request from a HIPAA fax account?

A practice may disclose protected health information for its own payment activities (45 CFR 164.506(c)), and the definition of payment lists preauthorization of services under utilization review (45 CFR 164.501, paragraph (2)(v)). 45 CFR 164.502(b) requires a practice to make reasonable efforts to limit the protected health information it discloses to the minimum necessary for the purpose. For a prior authorization the purpose is one patient and one service.

Under 45 CFR 160.103 a fax service that creates, receives, maintains or transmits a practice's protected health information is a business associate, and every Fax Pigeon plan includes a signed BAA executed at signup. Save the packet as one PDF, send it from your browser or your email, enter the number from the table and file the delivery certificate with the request. Basic is $4.99 a month billed annually for 200 pages, sent and received together (plans and pricing).

What if the fax fails or UnitedHealthcare changes the number?

Without a delivery certificate the fax is not confirmed as delivered. Send it again, and if that fails too, enter the request in the provider portal or call Provider Services at 877-842-3210. For a commercial or Medicare Advantage medication request, call 800-711-4555. UnitedHealthcare's retirement page lists 54 numbers retired in 2019, so compare each digit you type with the prior authorization page. A misdirected fax is an impermissible disclosure, and 45 CFR 164.402 presumes a breach unless the practice demonstrates a low probability that the information was compromised (how the test works).

For the same question about another payer, read Cigna prior authorization fax number. For the packet itself, read How to fax a prior authorization request.

* Fax and phone numbers verified October 11, 2026, on UnitedHealthcare's own prior authorization page (https://www.uhcprovider.com/en/prior-auth-advance-notification.html) and commercial requirements list effective October 1, 2026 (https://www.uhcprovider.com/content/dam/provider/docs/public/prior-auth/pa-requirements/commercial/UHC-Commercial-PA-Requirements-10-2026.pdf). Confirm each number on the current page before you send patient information. Fax Pigeon is not affiliated with UnitedHealthcare.