| ICD-10 is the new coding system that is being | | | | consistent with medical practice. |
| developed as a replacement for ICD-9. It’s a | | | | More details: Clinicians and coders can provide |
| hot topic for home care providers; with the | | | | more detail with a single code than they can in |
| implementation date currently set for less than | | | | ICD-9. Added detail makes ICD-10-CM more |
| three years away. Take advantage of the lead | | | | applicable to non-hospital health care encounters. |
| time with this indispensible medical coding | | | | More characters: Codes in ICD-10-CM are all |
| information you always wanted to know. | | | | alphanumeric and can be up to seven characters |
| These are some of the key differences between | | | | in length. The seventh character, an extension, is |
| the two coding systems, ICD-9 and ICD-10: | | | | used in some chapters to capture episodes of |
| More specificity: Level of detail and specifics are | | | | care and other additional information. |
| greatly expanded in ICD-10-CM. But while ICD-10 | | | | More combination codes: ICD-10 combination |
| can provide greater specificity, it won’t | | | | codes will provide details that require more than |
| require more detailed documentation. Other | | | | one code in ICD-9. |
| initiatives such as pay-for-performance and quality | | | | Use this medical coding information while |
| measures will require more detailed | | | | there’s still more groundwork to lay. It’s |
| documentation. ICD-10 will simply provide the | | | | never too early to start planning and preparation. |
| means for reporting it. | | | | However, for healthcare providers, it would be |
| Newer terminology: ICD-10-CM updates medical | | | | wise not to get your staff trained too far in |
| terminology and classification of disease to be | | | | advance. |