J717 – PET – Infection and/or inflammation, excluding cardiac
OHIP Cardio-Thoracic Surgery Code · Schedule of Benefits
Positron Emission Tomography (PET) for infection and/or inflammation indications, excluding cardiac-related indications.
When to Use
- Use J717 for investigating suspected prosthetic joint infection or osteomyelitis when the indication is listed as a 'Routine PET Scan' on the Ontario Health website.
- Use J717 for evaluating fever of unknown origin (FUO) or systemic inflammatory conditions, provided the indication is not cardiac-related.
Common Pitfalls
- Billing J717 for cardiac-related inflammation or infection, which must be billed under J715 instead.
- Submitting J717 for indications categorized as 'evidence-building' or 'PET Registry' rather than 'Routine PET Scan', which will result in rejection.
- Attempting to bill for the interpretation of the CT or MR component of the PET/CT study separately, as this is included in the J717 fee.
Billing Tips
- Verify the specific indication against the current Ontario Health PET Scans list before billing, as only 'Routine' indications are eligible for J717.
- Ensure the technical component (suffix B) is not billed if the patient is an inpatient or admitted to the hospital within 24 hours of the scan.
Effective: April 1, 2026
Nuclear Medicine - IN VIVO
Diagnostic
Indication must be listed as an approved 'Routine PET Scan' on the PET Scans Ontario website.
Must not be an 'evidence-building' indication (including PET Registry and/or PET Access Program indications).
Interpretation of CT or MR imaging performed as part of a PET/CT or PET/MR study for attenuation correction and anatomic localization is not eligible for payment.
PET scanning for all oncologic or suspected oncologic indications must be performed using a combined PET-CT or PET-MR.
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