Is A88.8 a billable ICD-10-CM code?

Yes. A88.8 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code and is valid for submission on a claim.

Where does A88.8 sit in the tabular list?

Certain infectious and parasitic diseases (A00-B99), in the block Viral and prion infections of the central nervous system (A80-A89).

What cannot be coded together with A88.8?

A88.8 carries Excludes1 notes, which means the conditions they list can never be coded together with it on the same encounter. Some are written on the categories above A88.8 (A88) and apply to it just the same.

A88.8

A88.8 — Other specified viral infections of central nervous system

Billable / specific codeICD-10-CM

A88.8 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code for other specified viral infections of central nervous system. It is valid for submission on a claim.

Excludes1 inherited from the categories above A88.8

These are not written on A88.8, but they bind it: a note on a category applies to every code beneath it. Billing A88.8 with anything listed here is a denial.

Written on A88 — Other viral infections of central nervous system, not elsewhere classified

viral encephalitis NOS (A86)
viral meningitis NOS (A87.9)

Risk adjustment

A88.8 does not map to an HCC and does not risk-adjust under CMS-HCC V28. That is normal — most ICD-10 codes do not. It still needs to be coded correctly; it just will not move a RAF score.

Medicare coverage

A88.8 is named in 3 Medicare coverage policies — 3 listing it as supporting medical necessity. Which of them applies to you depends on your Medicare contractor, and coverage genuinely differs by state.

A56612Billing and Coding: CT of the Head
A57204Billing and Coding: MRI and CT Scans of the Head and Neck
A57206Billing and Coding: Lumbar MRI

How A88.8 is indexed

Coders do not find codes by browsing the tabular list — they look them up in the alphabetic index, under the word the physician wrote. These are the index entries that lead here, so you can see which chart wordings map to A88.8.

Coxsackie›central nervous system NEC
Disease, diseased›enteroviral, enterovirus NEC›central nervous system NEC
Infection, infected, infective›virus, viral NOS›central nervous system›enterovirus NEC
Infection, infected, infective›virus, viral NOS›central nervous system›specified NEC

Code history

A88.8 has not changed since FY2024 — no addition, revision or deletion across the three most recent ICD-10-CM releases.

Related codes at this level

Codes that share A88. If A88.8 is not quite right, the correct code is usually one of these.

Questions about A88.8

Is A88.8 a billable ICD-10-CM code?: Yes. A88.8 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code and is valid for submission on a claim.
Where does A88.8 sit in the tabular list?: Certain infectious and parasitic diseases (A00-B99), in the block Viral and prion infections of the central nervous system (A80-A89).
What cannot be coded together with A88.8?: A88.8 carries Excludes1 notes, which means the conditions they list can never be coded together with it on the same encounter. Some are written on the categories above A88.8 (A88) and apply to it just the same.