Orthopedic Coding Alert

Question: What’s the latest on ICD-10 coding for patients who have COVID-19?

Michigan Subscriber

Answer: ICD-10 has made some dramatic additions to its code lists in order to represent patients suffering from COVID-19. To get on ICD-10’s wavelength, you’ll have to incorporate a whole new chapter of ICD-10 codes.

First, the ICD-10-CM Tabular List of Diseases and Injuries now includes the following new chapter, section, and category code:

• Chapter 22 - Codes for special purposes (U00-U85)
• Section - Provisional assignment of new diseases of uncertain etiology or emergency use (U00-U49)
• Category Code U07 - Emergency use of U07.

For COVID-19 positive-patients, you’ll report code U07.1 (COVID-19). But before doing so, you’ll want to have a look at the following list of supplemental “Use additional” and Excludes1 notes:

• Use additional code to identify pneumonia or other manifestations.
• Excludes1: Coronavirus infection, unspecified (B34.2).
• Excludes1: Coronavirus as the cause of diseases classified elsewhere (B97.2-).
• Excludes1: Pneumonia due to SARS-associated coronavirus (J12.81).

Those new details in the Tabular List are only a tiny subset of coding instruction on how to properly report COVID-19-related, and unrelated, cases. To get the full scoop, you’re going to want to have a look at the updated ICD-10-CM Official Coding and Reporting Guidelines at https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/icd/COVID-19-guidelines-final.pdf.