Instructions for ICD-9 Coding

The International Classification of DIseases, 9th revision; or ICD-9, is a code book published by the Practice Management Information Corporation (PMIC). The ICD-9 book contains codes for symptoms, diagnoses and diseases, procedures and supplies and preventative maintenance exams. It is divided into three volumes. Volume one is referred to as the "Tabular List" and consists of listings of numeric codes. Volume two is the Alphabetic Index. Volume three is a tabular and alphabetical list of procedures used mostly for hospital billing.

Things You'll Need

• International Classification of Diseases, 9th revision (ICD-9) Code book

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Instructions

• 1

  Read the patient's chart and note any symptoms the physician may have noted from speaking with or examining the patient.

• 2

  Identify the physician's diagnosis of the patient. The physician typically identifies this on the patient's encounter form and in the patient notes.

• 3

  Look up the codes for any diagnoses that were listed as diagnoses by the physician in the Alphabetical Index in Volume two. If no diagnosis is listed, code the patient's reporting symptoms.

• 4

  Check the code found for the diagnosis or symptoms in the Tabular List in Volume one. These codes are arranged, in numerical order, into seventeen chapters, two sections of supplementary V and E codes and four appendices. When double-checking the code in the tabular section, be sure to read all of the exclusion notes that may be listed in small print to identify the correct code. Diagnoses must be coded to the highest level of specificity, meaning they may require as many as four or five digits to be the most accurate.

• 5

  Enter the proper diagnosis codes into the billing form and submit to the insurance company for reimbursement.