Pathology/Lab Coding Alert

Question: Because physicians can order lab tests with a narrative diagnosis, we sometimes have to assign the appropriate ICD-9 code for lab billing based on the physician's description. Unfortunately, sometimes we have diagnosis coding questions that seem unanswerable. Are there any resources we can consult when an ICD-9 question is too tough to solve in our lab?


North Dakota Subscriber


Answer: You can consult several resources on the Internet if you have diagnosis coding queries. Here is a list of those Web sites. Keep it handy in case you or anyone else in the lab ever has a question about or a problem with diagnosis coding.

Web Sites of Note:

 List of new ICD-9-CM codes: www.cms.hhs.gov/medlearn/icd9code.asp. These are updated quarterly, so you should check for new codes regularly.

 Official ICD-9-CM coding guidelines: www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/icd9/icdguide.pdf.

 ICD-9 CM Coordination and Maintenance Committee:

www.cdc.gov/nchs/about/otheract/icd9/maint/maint.htm. This site includes information about the meetings in which committee members discuss and decide on ICD-9 code changes.