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Primary Care Coding Alert

READER QUESTIONS:

Use V Code for HIV Testing

Published on Wed Jan 27, 2010

Question: Our family physician ordered an HIV test for his patient who is known to have multiple sexual partners. There are several new V codes for laboratory tests that are in ICD-9 CM 2010. Which one(s) do I use? Montana Subscriber Answer: In this case, the test was clearly ordered as a screening test. Therefore, you should use code V73.89 (Special screening examination for viral and chlamydial diseases; other specified viral and chlamydial diseases; other specified viral diseases) as the primary diagnosis. You can use the code as a first-listed or additional diagnosis. V codes describe the reason for the encounter, but physicians should still use specific condition codes to describe the signs, symptoms, or disease that show(s) medical necessity for ordered tests.
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