Wiki Z34.- vs Z36.-

[caquay]

Can someone please provide me with some more information regarding the use of Z34.- (Encounter for supervision of normal pregnancy) versus the use of Z36.- (Encounter for antenatal screening of mother), and when it would be appropriate to assign on versus the other?
I cannot seem to find anything that is really helping me define the difference.

Thank you in advance!

Chelsea Quay, CPC, CEMC

 

[Chelle-Lynn]

Z36
Antenatal screening of the mother is done to help identifypotential increased risks to the fetus' or mother's health prenatally. Thiscode is used when the purpose of the visit is solely to conduct the screeningtest. Fetal conditions that are already suspected and looked for, but ruledout, are reported to subcategory Z03.7-.


Z34
A pregnancy can only be considered 'normal' when there is noproblem or condition present that complicates the maternal state. When such acondition is present, the appropriate code(s) are reported from the pregnancy,childbirth, and puerperium chapter.


So if you are seeing the mother for care of the pregnancy orante-partum then you would code Z34. Ifthe reason for the visits is only for screening test then you would use Z36.