K59.0 — Constipation
K59.0 is a non-billable header ICD-10-CM code for constipation. It cannot be billed on its own: choose one of the more specific child codes below.
Excludes1 — never code together
These conditions cannot occur together. Billing both on the same encounter is a denial.
- fecal impaction (K56.41)
Excludes2 — not included here, but may coexist
The excluded condition is not part of this code, but a patient can have both. You may code both.
- incomplete defecation (R15.0)
Other codes that can never be billed with K59.0
These codes carry an Excludes1 note pointing at K59.0. The conflict binds both ways, but ICD-10-CM only writes it down on one side — so you would not find this by reading K59.0 alone.
- R19.4Change in bowel habit
Risk adjustment
K59.0 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 to one of these instead K59.0
6 child codes. Green means billable.
Related codes at this level
Codes that share K59. If K59.0 is not quite right, the correct code is usually one of these.
Questions about K59.0
- Is K59.0 a billable ICD-10-CM code?
- No. K59.0 is a non-billable header code. Code to a higher level of specificity using one of its child codes.
- Where does K59.0 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 K59.0?
- K59.0 carries an Excludes1 note, which means the conditions it lists can never be coded together with it on the same encounter.