Is K72.1 a billable ICD-10-CM code?

No. K72.1 is a non-billable header code. Code to a higher level of specificity using one of its child codes.

Where does K72.1 sit in the tabular list?

Diseases of the digestive system (K00-K95), in the block Diseases of liver (K70-K77).

What cannot be coded together with K72.1?

K72.1 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 K72.1 (K72) and apply to it just the same.

K72.1

K72.1 — Chronic hepatic failure

Non-billable headerICD-10-CM

K72.1 is a non-billable header ICD-10-CM code for chronic hepatic failure. It cannot be billed on its own: choose one of the more specific child codes below.

Inclusion terms

Alternative wordings a physician may use in the chart for this same code.

End stage liver disease

Excludes1 inherited from the categories above K72.1

These are not written on K72.1, but they bind it: a note on a category applies to every code beneath it. Billing K72.1 with anything listed here is a denial.

Written on K72 — Hepatic failure, not elsewhere classified

alcoholic hepatic failure (K70.4)
hepatic failure with toxic liver disease (K71.1-)
icterus of newborn (P55-P59)
postprocedural hepatic failure (K91.82)

Excludes2 inherited from the categories above K72.1

Also inherited, and the opposite of Excludes1: these conditions are not part of K72.1, but a patient can have both, so you may code both.

Written on K72 — Hepatic failure, not elsewhere classified

hepatic failure complicating abortion or ectopic or molar pregnancy (O00-O07, O08.8)
hepatic failure complicating pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium (O26.6-)
viral hepatitis with hepatic coma (B15-B19)

Other codes that can never be billed with K72.1

These codes carry an Excludes1 note pointing at K72.1. The conflict binds both ways, but ICD-10-CM only writes it down on one side — so you would not find this by reading K72.1 alone.

K76.2Central hemorrhagic necrosis of liver
K76.82Hepatic encephalopathy
R40Somnolence, stupor and coma

Risk adjustment

K72.1 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

K72.1 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 K72.1

2 child codes. Green means billable.

Related codes at this level

Codes that share K72. If K72.1 is not quite right, the correct code is usually one of these.

Questions about K72.1

Is K72.1 a billable ICD-10-CM code?: No. K72.1 is a non-billable header code. Code to a higher level of specificity using one of its child codes.
Where does K72.1 sit in the tabular list?: Diseases of the digestive system (K00-K95), in the block Diseases of liver (K70-K77).
What cannot be coded together with K72.1?: K72.1 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 K72.1 (K72) and apply to it just the same.