On October 1, 2014, you and your practice will be required to switch from the familiar ICD-9 code set to more detailed ICD-10 codes. While ICD-10 contains many more codes, your practice will continue to use only codes that are relevant to the patients you treat.
Think about your office today – you have been using the same ICD-9 codes for years and have probably memorized the ones you work with most frequently. To prepare for the new code set:
- Identify the diagnoses you most frequently code.
- Use an ICD-10 code book or software tool to look up these diagnoses and review the potential new codes for the best match.
- Understand how your clinicians communicate with your coding/billing colleagues: What words do they use to describe their routine protocols to coders/billers?
- Identify how your practice will enter key words, medical notes, and content in medical records so the protocols are clearly communicated.
- Discuss changes that may occur in clinical documentation to support ICD-10 code selection.
- As you begin testing ICD-10 in the coming year, share your ICD-10 code interpretation and selections with your colleagues to minimize the learning curve and avoid miscommunications.
You may notice multiple ICD-10 codes for a given ICD-9 code. The ICD-10 code structure accommodates more information than the ICD-9 structure, for added detail. The result is a more complete picture of complex medical conditions that your clinical documentation will need to capture.
To take advantage of the power of ICD-10, your practice will need to:
- Look at how ICD-10 codes differ from ICD-9 codes for your most common diagnoses.
- Identify what additional documentation or descriptive language clinicians might need to include to ensure selection of the correct ICD-10 code.
Keep Up to Date on ICD-10
Visit the CMS ICD-10 website for the latest news and resources to help you prepare.
For practical transition tips:
- Read recent ICD-10 email update messages
- Access the ICD-10 continuing medical education modules developed by CMS in partnership with Medscape
