Inpatient Facility Coding & Compliance Alert
Report Reason for Admission Before Underlying Condition
Question: The admitting physician documented alcoholic gastritis due to chronic alcoholism. What would be the correct sequence of codes?
Answer: The patient is being seen because of the alcoholic gastritis, which makes that condition the principal diagnosis and the one you should report first (535.30, Alcoholic gastritis [without hemorrhage]). If the physician’s notes document hemorrhage related to the gastritis, report 535.31 (… with hemorrhage) instead.
If you were instructed to code the underlying condition first, then you would list the chronic alcoholism as the principal diagnosis (303.90, Other and unspecified alcohol dependence; unspecified drinking behavior).
Washington Subscriber
Inpatient Facility Coding & Compliance Alert
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