W777 – Intermediate assessment - Pronouncement of death
OHIP Neurology Code — CONSULTATIONS AND VISITS · Schedule of Benefits
A visit for pronouncement of death is the service of pronouncing a patient dead in a long-term care institution, such as a chronic care hospital, convalescent hospital, nursing home, or home for the aged. This service may include counselling of relatives rendered during the same visit and the completion of the death certificate. It is intended for non-elective, non-emergency situations. If a special visit is required to pronounce death, an appropriate 'A' prefix assessment code and special visit premium should be claimed instead of W777. As per , claims for this service should use the diagnostic code for the underlying cause of death, not the immediate cause.
When to Use
- Use W777 when you are the attending physician called to a long-term care facility to perform a physical examination and formally pronounce death.
- Use this code when the pronouncement occurs during your routine presence in the facility, provided you are not the MRP billing the W010 monthly management fee.
Common Pitfalls
- Billing W777 while also billing the W010 monthly management fee for the same patient in the same month, which will result in an automatic rejection.
- Using the immediate cause of death (e.g., cardiac arrest) as the diagnostic code instead of the underlying chronic condition as required by GP27.
- Attempting to bill W777 for a death pronouncement that required a special trip to the facility, which should instead be billed as an 'A' prefix assessment with applicable special visit premiums.
Billing Tips
- If you are the MRP, ensure you are not billing W777 separately, as the pronouncement is considered part of the comprehensive care covered by the W010 monthly fee.
Effective: April 1, 2026
A. Consultations and Visits
CONSULTATIONS AND VISITS
Assessment
Hospital and Institutional Consultations and Assessments
Submit the claim for this service using the diagnostic code for the underlying cause of death, as recorded on the death certificate, rather than the immediate cause of death.
This service applies to patients in chronic care hospitals, convalescent hospitals, nursing homes, homes for the aged and designated chronic or convalescent care beds in hospitals other than patients in designated palliative care beds.
When acute intercurrent illness requires a special visit, submit claims using the appropriate fees under General Listings (“A” prefix) and premiums.
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