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Billing code

B997A — First Person Seen - Nights (00:00 - 07:00) , Palliative Care Home Visit

Night palliative home visit premium

Bill B997 for the first patient seen on a palliative care home visit made between 00:00 and 07:00.

Watch for: Chart the time of the visit, or the premium isn't payable; it must be on the same claim as the visit service.

Code

B997A

Description

First Person Seen - Nights (00:00 - 07:00) , Palliative Care Home Visit

FHO+ basket

Not in the FHO+ base rate basket (Schedule 2 or 2B).

Effective date

Apr 1, 2026

Termination date

No end date

Explanation

Updated October 26, 2026

Premium for the first patient seen on a palliative care home visit made at night (midnight to 7:00). Added to the visit you bill.

What it covers

B997 is the Table VII special visit premium for a palliative care home visit, first person seen, when the visit happens at night between 00:00 and 07:00 (GP76). The daytime and evening version (07:00 to 24:00, any day) is B998, and the travel premium for any time is B966 (GP76).

Palliative care means care for a terminally ill patient in the final year of life, where no aggressive treatment of the underlying disease is planned and care is aimed at comfort until death (GP5). A special visit is one the patient or someone on their behalf asks for; in the patient's home it can be elective or non-elective (GP65).

Billing rules

• Table VII has no maximum per time period for B997, B998 or B966 (GP76).
• Bill it with the A-prefix service you provide at the visit from the General Listings (GP69). A premium is only payable with certain Consultations and Visits or Diagnostic and Therapeutic services (GP65).
• Chart the time the visit took place, or the premium is not payable (GP69).
• Not payable for a place other than a hospital or LTC home that is scheduled to be open to see patients, or for patients seen just before, during or after routine office hours (GP65).
• Home includes apartments, retirement homes and other residences, but not a hospital or LTC home (GP4).
• FHO: B997 counts toward the palliative care special payment for enrolled and non-enrolled patients (Agreement p.66 §8.6).

Often billed with

• B966 palliative care home visit travel premium (GP76).
• K023 palliative care support for 20 minutes or more, or A900 complex house call assessment for a shorter visit (A2, A6; OMA palliative guide pp.6–7).
• A902 pronouncement of death in the home, for a night call to pronounce death (A6).

Common rejections

• AD9: 'Premium not allowed alone': B997 must be on the same claim as the visit service it is added to (GP65, GP69).

Related codes: B998, B966, K023, A900, A902, B996, G512

Source: Schedule of Benefits (July 1, 2026), General Preamble, Special Visit Premiums, page GP76.

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