More to the 2024 ICD-10-CM coding updates than meets the eye

When the weather starts to cool off and the leaves begin to fall, coding professionals all start to think about fiscal year (FY) coding changes. You just cannot help it. If you are a coder, the start of fall means coding updates are coming. FY update files are available (usually in June) on the CMS website, but changes do not go into effect until October 1 of that year.

There is more to FY changes than just new, revised, expanded, or deleted codes as listed in the Tabular Addenda. Coders must also consider changes to the tabular notes, index, and 2024 ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting.

The index and tabular changes can really impact coding, and unfortunately, these changes are overlooked most often. If any coder is not familiar with the format of the addenda documents, I recommend taking a few moments to download the latest addenda documents and review them.

These documents contain additions, deletions, and changes and are generally easy to understand.

Examples of these index and tabular changes for FY 2024 that may have been overlooked include:

• Bowel obstruction
• Colon polyps
• Emphysema/ chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
• Sickle cell pain

To learn more about changes for FY 2024, read the complete article in JustCoding.

Teresa Seville, RHIT, CCS, is a development analyst at Solventum.