Physicians
Are you a treating physician to a patient who has been involved in a car crash? Here are a few things you should know.
A better, more affordable ICBC
The B.C. government and ICBC have announced changes to auto insurance coming in May 2021. Under Enhanced Care coverage, British Columbians injured in a crash will have significantly enhanced recovery benefits whether or not the injured person was responsible for the crash. To learn more, visit ICBC and ICBC changes to insurance.
Support for physicians treating ICBC patients
ICBC has partnered with UBC Continuing Professional Development to create an online resource to support physicians and MOAs in treating patients. The resource addresses all common topics and answers most common questions.
Treatment guidelines
Physicians are expected to assess patients and determine their treatment plans in accordance with the College of Physicians and Surgeons practice standards, using evidence-informed practice when establishing a diagnosis and providing treatments.
When treating a patient with an injury listed in sections 3 or 4 of the Diagnostic and Treatment Protocols in the Minor Injury Regulation made under the Insurance (Vehicle) Act, a health care practitioner must educate the patient with respect to the following:
(1) (a) if applicable, the desirability of an early return:
a. to the activities the patient could perform before the injury, or
b. to the patient’s employment, occupation or profession or the patient’s training or education in a program or course;
(b) an estimate of the probable length of time that symptoms will last;
(c) the usual course of recovery;
(d) the probable factors that are responsible for the symptoms the patient may be experiencing;
(e) appropriate self-management and pain management strategies.
(2) When treating a pain syndrome and a psychological or psychiatric condition, a health care practitioner must identify comorbid conditions, if applicable.
Fees
The Insurance (Vehicle) Regulation contains updated treatment fees that ICBC will cover for care and treatment after a crash. These rates apply to patient visits in which an assessment occurs and for which a report and treatment plan is generated. The table below outlines the type of visits that may occur, and the fee that ICBC will pay upon receipt of the report.
| Report type | Under what circumstances | When?* | Fee |
| Standard assessment & report | Patients are not off work and/or not significantly impacted in performing their typical activities of daily living (ADLs). | First or second visit | $123 |
| Extended assessment & report | Patients are off work/school, on a modified work plan or are experiencing significant functional impairment and unable to perform their typical ADLs. | First or second visit | $333 |
| Re-assessment & report | Recovery is prolonged and/or a referral to a Registered Care Advisor is required | Approximately 60–90 days** | $215 |
Neither emergency room physicians nor walk-in clinics should complete these reports.
*Standard and extended assessments and reports should be completed during the patient’s first visit, whenever possible, by the most responsible physician.
**From the date of the accident causing the injury.
Notes
- For physicians, regular visits will continue to be billed via MSP-Teleplan with ICBC selected as the insurer and no report is required.
- Visits occurring after a claim closes can no longer be billed to ICBC.
Invoicing & reporting
When a patient attends an appointment for the purpose of completing a report to send to ICBC, the report itself serves as the invoice; no invoice is required. Short visits that don’t require a reassessment report can be invoiced through MSP-Teleplan.
If a patient attends for a regular appointment, presenting with injuries from a crash and has a valid claim number, they may be rescheduled for a subsequent, longer, appointment and an assessment and report may be completed at that time.
The CL489 series of reports are the ONLY reports requested by ICBC under Section 28/28.1 of the Insurance (Vehicle) Act. ICBC is not permitted to request any other reports, diagnostic test results, or clinical records without patient consent.
It is important to discuss with your patient the purpose of the reports. Please ensure reports or information are shared with ICBC only where patient consent has been granted or where requested under legislation. For more information on patient consent, including a flow chart of the process, review our patient consent considerations document.
Reports have been integrated into EMR
The new ICBC reports have been integrated into several common Electronic Medical Record (EMR) solutions. Please ensure you are following the required steps of your respective EMR solution. If your EMR solution does not house the report you are looking for, you will be able to download the report here after April 1, 2019. If your EMR provider has not integrated the reports into their software, please mail or fax the report to:
By fax: 1-877-686-4222
By mail:
Return to ICBC
PO BOX 2121, STATION TERMINAL
VANCOUVER, B.C.
V6B 0L6
You can find out more information about submitting reports and access the standard and extended assessment and reassessment report templates on the Reports page.
Information for completing reports
You are required to complete the report(s) if you are physician who is considered most responsible for the patient (and you are monitoring the outlined treatment plan). Neither emergency room physicians nor walk-in clinics should complete these reports.
You will need the patient’s claim number and date of accident, as well as the vendor number for the payee. In some cases, the payee is the same as the physician completing the report, or it may be a clinic or another entity depending on your payment model. You will be asked to identify an invoice or reference number, which would be the number in your own filing system that would help you identify the payment of this item for accounts reconciliation purposes.
What is an ICBC vendor number?
A vendor number is used to identify the clinic or practitioner that ICBC pays for the treatment service. This number allows for you to conveniently receive one combined payment for all services, along with a statement listing all paid reports or invoices. Payments can be received via electronic fund transfer (EFT), which is deposited directly to your nominated account. Keeping on top of your business accounts is easier when you’re enrolled in our vendor system.
If you have completed a CL-19 previously, you will find your vendor number on the vendor statement or EFT statement that you received from ICBC. If you have a vendor number already, you will not need to apply for a new one, as this number will not be changing as of April 1 and will remain strictly for billing purposes. Please ensure that you use the number identifying the clinic or practitioner that is to be paid for completing the service.
Applying for a vendor number
To update payment information for standard visits, which are invoiced via MSP-Teleplan, you must contact MSP-Teleplan directly. ICBC does not maintain payment details for items invoiced through MSP-Teleplan.
- If you are new to working with ICBC patients and will be invoicing ICBC directly for reports and other non-MSP services, you can apply for a vendor number.
- If you are a physician already providing services to ICBC patients and are wanting to be paid directly for reports and other non-MSP services, the Health Care Inquiry Unit can confirm the ICBC vendor number that matches your MSP record. This is an ICBC-specific account number that is automatically generated the first time an office visit is billed via MSP-Teleplan.
- If you are a physician employed by an entity that already invoices ICBC, and you do not want to be paid directly for reports and other non-MSP services, you do not need to apply for a vendor number.
- If you are a clinic that only employs physicians, and no other treatment providers (ex. physiotherapist, chiropractor, counsellor) that see ICBC patients, you can apply for a vendor number using the form below, or the Health Care Inquiry Unit can verify your vendor number.
- If you are a clinic that employs physicians and other treatment providers who see ICBC patients, please review the vendor application requirements on the Vendor number page.
Registered Care Advisor referrals
The role of the Registered Care Advisor (RCA) is to provide expedited medical consultations to patients injured in a motor vehicle accident no later than 90 days after the date of the accident that caused the injury. The intention of these referrals is to advise treating physicians on best practice and appropriate diagnosis and treatment pathways when one or more of the following circumstances apply:
(a) the family physician is unable to make a clear diagnosis;
(b) the patient is not recovering from the injury as expected by the family physician;
(c) there are factors complicating the patient’s recovery from the injury.
Physicians can refer patients to any RCA on the applicable roster, including those within the same clinic or practice. The selection of RCA is at the discretion of the physician and may depend on factors including proximity to the patient and specialty or area of practice. Physicians can provide up to two referrals for a patient, with the initial referral typically occurring within 90 days of the injury.
Physicians can apply to become an RCA through the College of Physicians and Surgeons’ Annual Licence Renewal Form, or by contacting the College directly at any time outside of this period. RCAs are compensated $380 for the initial appointment and report and $120 for the follow-up.
For more information, visit the RCA section of the Business Partners page or view detailed RCA Information Guide.
Contact & support
The Health Care Inquiry Unit (HCIU) is available to address questions Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. PST
- Lower mainland: 604-587-7150
- Toll free: 1-888-717-7150
For additional support and information, visit the Support and resources page.