Billing for NIHB and Canadian Government Health Programs

Overview

You can use Zanda to record sessions, set hourly rates, generate invoices, and track payments for NIHB and other Canadian government health programs.

Non-Insured Health Benefits (NIHB) is a federal program administered by Health Canada that provides health coverage to eligible First Nations and Inuit clients. Claims must be submitted through Health Canada’s own online claims portal, which is separate from Zanda.

Zanda does not integrate directly with NIHB or other Canadian government program portals. However, it supports your workflow by helping you:

• Set up services with correct billing rates
• Generate invoices for record-keeping and claim reference
• Bill for multiple hours or units on a single invoice
• Set up government programs as Third Parties for tracking
• Record payments once claims are approved
• Run financial reports across all payers

In this article

• Understanding the NIHB billing workflow with Zanda
• Step 1: Set up your NIHB service with an hourly rate
• Step 2: Create an appointment and generate an invoice
• Step 3: Bill for more than one hour
• Step 4: Submit your claim to NIHB’s portal
• Step 5: Record the NIHB payment in Zanda
• Optional: Set up NIHB as a Third Party
• Helpful Information
  • Provincial health programs
  • Private health insurance
• Related articles

Understanding the NIHB billing workflow with Zanda

Because NIHB claims are submitted outside of Zanda, your workflow looks like this:

1. Record the appointment and generate the invoice in Zanda
2. Use the invoice details to submit your claim in the NIHB portal
3. Record the payment in Zanda once NIHB approves and pays the claim

This approach keeps your records accurate in Zanda while meeting NIHB’s external requirements.

Step 1: Set up your NIHB service with an hourly rate

Before using NIHB services in appointments, you need to create them in your account settings.

1. Go to User Menu > Account Settings > Billing > Services
2. Click + Add Service
3. Complete the service details:
   • Name: e.g. NIHB Counselling or NIHB – Mental Health Session
   • Item Number/Code: Enter the NIHB benefit item code (if applicable)
   • Duration: Set to 60 minutes for a 1-hour service
   • Price: Enter the approved NIHB hourly rate
   • Tax: Select Tax Exempt if applicable in your province
4. Click Save

Step 2: Create an appointment and generate an invoice

Once your service is set up:

1. Create or open the client’s appointment in your calendar
2. Under Appointment Details, select your NIHB service
3. Click Save

An invoice will automatically be created and linked to the appointment.

Step 3: Bill for more than one hour

If you need to invoice for multiple hours:

1. Open the appointment and scroll to the Invoice section
2. Click the Edit (pencil) icon
3. Add the NIHB service as a separate line item for each additional hour
   1. Example: For a 2-hour session, add the service twice
   2. (Optional) Update the Description for clarity (e.g. “Hour 1: 10:00–11:00”)
4. Or, Add the NIHB service as a line item and update the Qty (quantity) to the number of items / hours provided.
   1. 1. Example: For a 2-hour session, update 'Qty' to 2
      2. (Optional) Update the Description for clarity (service provided for duration of 2 hours )
5. Click Save Invoice

Step 4: Submit your claim to NIHB’s portal

Use your Zanda invoice as a reference when submitting your claim:

• Service name and item code → NIHB benefit item
• Invoice date → date of service
• Invoice total → claim amount

Step 5: Record the NIHB payment in Zanda

After receiving payment from NIHB, record it against the invoice.

Method 1: From the calendar

1. Click the appointment
2. Scroll to Payments
3. Click + Add Payment
4. Enter payment details (method, amount)
5. Click Save

Method 2: From the Billing menu

1. Go to Billing > New Payment
2. Select the client
3. Enter payment details
4. Click Save Changes, then allocate the payment to the invoice

Optional: Set up NIHB as a third party

You can create a Third Party profile to reflect NIHB as the payer.

1. Go to People > Add
2. Enable Third Party
3. Enter “NIHB” as the business name
4. Click Next

To assign NIHB as the default payer:

• Open the client profile
• Go to Billing > Billing Setup
• Select NIHB in the Bill To field

For more details, see:
Invoicing to a Third Party

Helpful Information

Provincial health programs

Some provinces offer programs that fund health services for specific populations (for example, mental health initiatives or Indigenous health programs). These programs vary by province and typically require external claim submission.

The general workflow in Zanda remains the same:

• Set up the program as a service and/or Third Party
• Generate invoices in Zanda
• Submit claims externally
• Record payments once received

Private health insurance

For clients with private health insurance (such as Blue Cross, Manulife, or Sun Life), Zanda supports two common workflows:

1. Client pays and claims
Invoice the client directly. They pay you, then submit a claim to their insurer.

2. Third Party billing
Set up the insurer as a Third Party and invoice them directly. Record the payment once received.

Related articles

• Adding and Editing Services
• Creating, Editing, Printing and Emailing Invoices
• Invoicing to a Third Party
• Adding and Managing Payments
• Financial Reports