OASIS edit -4700: Invalid Branch
Edit -4700 is a fatal consistency edit in CMS's OASIS-E2 data specifications V3.02.0, effective for records with completion dates on or after 2026-04-01. iQIES reports it as "Invalid Branch". A fatal edit rejects the record: "Records with fatal errors will be rejected. All fatal errors in a record must be corrected and resubmitted." It checks 1 item: M0016_BRANCH_ID. CMS's action: "Make appropriate corrections to the records and resubmit."
What CMS's data specification says about -4700
CMS's OASIS-E2 Data Submission Specifications V3.02.0 (HTML edit page oe_4700.html, generated 11/05/2025) list edit -4700 with edit type Consistency and severity Fatal. The edit text, as CMS publishes it:
If the assessment was performed by the home office of an HHA which has branches or by the home office of a subunit which has branches, then M0016_BRANCH_ID must contain [P]. This indicates that the assessment was completed by the home office (an HHA parent or subunit -- not a branch).
CMS's overview document defines this edit type: "Consistency edits define logical constraints among multiple items."
What the iQIES error message for -4700 says
CMS's OASIS Error Message Reference Guide v2.4 (Excel, posted 2026-02-05 on the QTSO reference manuals page) has 1 current entry for this edit. Each is copied in full, with whitespace normalised:
-4700
- Error ID
- -4700
- Severity
- Fatal
- Type
- Consistency
- Error message
- Invalid Branch: If the assessment was performed by the home office of an HHA with branches or by the home office of a subunit with branches, then M0016 must contain P.
- Potential cause
- The value submitted in M0016 (Branch ID Number) is inconsistent with the known organization of the agency or subunit submitting this record as identified by the value submitted in HHA_AGENCY_ID.
- Tips
- IF the home office of the agency or subunit completed this record, THEN M0016 must be P.• Open branches are evaluated per the certification in effect at the time of the assessment, based on the assessment’s Effective Date.
- Action
- Make appropriate corrections to the records and resubmit.
- Effective start date
- 2010-01-01
- Effective end date
- 2099-12-31 (CMS uses this date for an open-ended entry)
Items this edit checks
CMS's Item List for -4700 names 1 item.
| Item ID | Description (CMS) | Item page |
|---|---|---|
| M0016_BRANCH_ID | Branch ID | M0016 |
Related edits
Other current edits whose CMS Item List shares one or more items with -4700:
What happens to the record
CMS's overview, section 6.4, on fatal edits: "Violation of a fatal edit will result in rejection of the submission file." CMS's iQIES error message guide: "Records with fatal errors will be rejected. All fatal errors in a record must be corrected and resubmitted."
Which records this edit applies to
Data specifications version 3.02 has an effective start date of 2026-04-01 and no end date (CMS overview, Table 1). CMS selects the edit set by the record's completion date: "When a submitted record is validated by the iQIES system, its completion date is evaluated and is used to load the appropriate set of edits for the specifications in effect on that date."
Frequently asked questions
Is OASIS edit -4700 fatal or a warning?
Fatal. CMS lists edit -4700 with severity Fatal in the OASIS-E2 data specifications V3.02.0. The CMS overview states: "Violation of a fatal edit will result in rejection of the submission file." The iQIES error guide adds: "Records with fatal errors will be rejected. All fatal errors in a record must be corrected and resubmitted."
Which OASIS items can trigger edit -4700?
CMS's Item List for edit -4700 names 1 item: M0016_BRANCH_ID. The full list with descriptions is in the table above.
How do I fix OASIS edit -4700?
CMS's OASIS Error Message Reference Guide v2.4 gives this action for -4700: "Make appropriate corrections to the records and resubmit." Its tips: "IF the home office of the agency or subunit completed this record, THEN M0016 must be P. • Open branches are evaluated per the certification in effect at the time of the assessment, based on the assessment’s Effective Date."
Which records does edit -4700 apply to?
Under version 3.02 of the data specifications, records whose completion date, item M0090_INFO_COMPLETED_DT, is on or after 2026-04-01, the effective start date CMS gives that version. Records completed earlier are checked under the version in effect on their completion date (CMS overview, Table 1 and section 3.2); the effective start date on each guide entry above is the date CMS's error guide gives that entry. The CMS overview states: "When a submitted record is validated by the iQIES system, its completion date is evaluated and is used to load the appropriate set of edits for the specifications in effect on that date."
Sources
- CMS, OASIS-E2 Data Submission Specifications V3.02.0 FINAL (zip): HTML edit page
oe_4700.htmland the Unduplicated Edits By ID Report. https://www.cms.gov/files/zip/oasis-e2-data-specs-v3-02-0-final-zip.zip (download page: https://www.cms.gov/medicare/quality/home-health/data-specifications) - CMS, OASIS Data Submission Specifications Overview, Version 3.02.0, October 29, 2025 (in the same zip).
- CMS QTSO, OASIS Error Message Reference Guide v2.4 (Excel), posted 2026-02-05. https://qtso.cms.gov/system/files/qtso/OASIS%20Error%20Message%20Reference%20Guide%20FINAL%202.4.26.xlsx
CMS text on this page is copied from CMS's documents without rewording; whitespace is normalised, and one rendering artifact in CMS's HTML (a double quote standing in for an apostrophe) is corrected to the apostrophe in CMS's PDF report. This page is maintained by Logicly, which is not affiliated with CMS. Checked against the CMS files on 2026-10-16.