Ob-Gyn Coding Alert

Question: How do you code for a postpartum follow-up visit for a patient who had gestational hypertension or pre-eclampsia whose symptoms are no longer present?

Oklahoma Subscriber

Answer: You should report codes Z39.2 (Encounter for routine postpartum follow-up) and Z87.59 (Personal history of other complications of pregnancy, childbirth, and the puerperium) for a follow-up visit for gestational hypertension and pre-eclampsia that is no longer present at the time of the visit. This is because ICD-10 guidelines state that once a condition is no longer present, it becomes a history of the problem instead.