Is K56.60 a billable ICD-10-CM code?

No. K56.60 is a non-billable header code. Code to a higher level of specificity using one of its child codes.

Where does K56.60 sit in the tabular list?

Diseases of the digestive system (K00-K95), in the block Other diseases of intestines (K55-K64).

What cannot be coded together with K56.60?

K56.60 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 K56.60 (K56) and apply to it just the same.

K56.60

K56.60 — Unspecified intestinal obstruction

Non-billable headerICD-10-CM

K56.60 is a non-billable header ICD-10-CM code for unspecified intestinal obstruction. It cannot be billed on its own: choose one of the more specific child codes below.

Excludes1 inherited from the categories above K56.60

These are not written on K56.60, but they bind it: a note on a category applies to every code beneath it. Billing K56.60 with anything listed here is a denial.

Written on K56 — Paralytic ileus and intestinal obstruction without hernia

congenital stricture or stenosis of intestine (Q41-Q42)
cystic fibrosis with meconium ileus (E84.11)
ischemic stricture of intestine (K55.1)
meconium ileus NOS (P76.0)
neonatal intestinal obstructions classifiable to P76.-
obstruction of duodenum (K31.5)
postprocedural intestinal obstruction (K91.3-)

Excludes2 inherited from the categories above K56.60

Also inherited, and the opposite of Excludes1: these conditions are not part of K56.60, but a patient can have both, so you may code both.

Written on K56 — Paralytic ileus and intestinal obstruction without hernia

stenosis of anus or rectum (K62.4)

Other codes that can never be billed with K56.60

These codes carry an Excludes1 note pointing at K56.60. The conflict binds both ways, but ICD-10-CM only writes it down on one side — so you would not find this by reading K56.60 alone.

P76.8Other specified intestinal obstruction of newborn

Risk adjustment

K56.60 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.

Code history

K56.60 has not changed since FY2024 — no addition, revision or deletion across the three most recent ICD-10-CM releases.

Code to one of these instead K56.60

3 child codes. Green means billable.

Related codes at this level

Codes that share K56.6. If K56.60 is not quite right, the correct code is usually one of these.

K56.69Other intestinal obstruction

Questions about K56.60

Is K56.60 a billable ICD-10-CM code?: No. K56.60 is a non-billable header code. Code to a higher level of specificity using one of its child codes.
Where does K56.60 sit in the tabular list?: Diseases of the digestive system (K00-K95), in the block Other diseases of intestines (K55-K64).
What cannot be coded together with K56.60?: K56.60 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 K56.60 (K56) and apply to it just the same.