New Codes for a New Year

Q: I always have difficulty getting updates for new codes for the new year. For whatever reason, I never get them until the spring or later. I am hoping you have and will share any new information or codes that are pertinent to the chiropractic profession. Can you help?

A: As you are aware, diagnosis and procedure codes may update or change at the start of a new year. This year is no different, and there are codes in the International Classification of Diseases-9th revision that have relevance to the chiropractic profession.

For 2009, there are 35 new and updated ICD-9 codes for headaches and eight updates for overexertion, strenuous and repetitive movements/loads. Procedure codes for physical medicine and rehabilitation had no updates or new codes. The diagnosis updates are:

For more specific information on the ICD-9, you can visit the Center for Disease Control's National Center for Health Statistics Web site at the following URL: www.cdc.gov/nchs/datawh/ftpserv/ftpicd9/ftpicd9.htm#guidelines.