Is L02.33 a billable ICD-10-CM code?

Yes. L02.33 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code and is valid for submission on a claim.

Where does L02.33 sit in the tabular list?

Diseases of the skin and subcutaneous tissue (L00-L99), in the block Infections of the skin and subcutaneous tissue (L00-L08).

What cannot be coded together with L02.33?

L02.33 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 L02.33 (L02.3) and apply to it just the same.

L02.33

L02.33 — Carbuncle of buttock

Billable / specific codeICD-10-CM

L02.33 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code for carbuncle of buttock. It is valid for submission on a claim.

Inclusion terms

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

Carbuncle of gluteal region

Excludes1 inherited from the categories above L02.33

These are not written on L02.33, but they bind it: a note on a category applies to every code beneath it. Billing L02.33 with anything listed here is a denial.

Written on L02.3 — Cutaneous abscess, furuncle and carbuncle of buttock

pilonidal cyst with abscess (L05.01)

Excludes2 inherited from the categories above L02.33

Also inherited, and the opposite of Excludes1: these conditions are not part of L02.33, but a patient can have both, so you may code both.

Written on L02 — Cutaneous abscess, furuncle and carbuncle

abscess of anus and rectal regions (K61.-)
abscess of female genital organs (external) (N76.4)
abscess of male genital organs (external) (N48.2, N49.-)

Risk adjustment

L02.33 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

L02.33 is named in 2 Medicare coverage policies — 2 listing it as supporting medical necessity. Which of them applies to you depends on your Medicare contractor, and coverage genuinely differs by state.

A56766Billing and Coding: Incision and Drainage (I&D) of Abscess of Skin, Subcutaneous and Accessory Structures
A57206Billing and Coding: Lumbar MRI

How L02.33 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 L02.33.

Carbuncle›buttock
Carbuncle›gluteal(region)
Carbuncle›partes posteriores

Code history

L02.33 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 L02.3. If L02.33 is not quite right, the correct code is usually one of these.

Questions about L02.33

Is L02.33 a billable ICD-10-CM code?: Yes. L02.33 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code and is valid for submission on a claim.
Where does L02.33 sit in the tabular list?: Diseases of the skin and subcutaneous tissue (L00-L99), in the block Infections of the skin and subcutaneous tissue (L00-L08).
What cannot be coded together with L02.33?: L02.33 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 L02.33 (L02.3) and apply to it just the same.