Is M79.6 a billable ICD-10-CM code?

No. M79.6 is a non-billable header code. Code to a higher level of specificity using one of its child codes.

Where does M79.6 sit in the tabular list?

Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (M00-M99), in the block Other soft tissue disorders (M70-M79).

What cannot be coded together with M79.6?

M79.6 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 M79.6 (M79) and apply to it just the same.

M79.6

M79.6 — Pain in limb, hand, foot, fingers and toes

Non-billable headerICD-10-CM

M79.6 is a non-billable header ICD-10-CM code for pain in limb, hand, foot, fingers and toes. It cannot be billed on its own: choose one of the more specific child codes below.

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.

pain in joint (M25.5-)

Excludes1 inherited from the categories above M79.6

These are not written on M79.6, but they bind it: a note on a category applies to every code beneath it. Billing M79.6 with anything listed here is a denial.

Written on M79 — Other and unspecified soft tissue disorders, not elsewhere classified

psychogenic rheumatism (F45.8)
soft tissue pain, psychogenic (F45.41)

Other codes that can never be billed with M79.6

These codes carry an Excludes1 note pointing at M79.6. The conflict binds both ways, but ICD-10-CM only writes it down on one side — so you would not find this by reading M79.6 alone.

R52Pain, unspecified

Risk adjustment

M79.6 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

M79.6 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 M79.6

7 child codes. Green means billable.

Related codes at this level

Codes that share M79. If M79.6 is not quite right, the correct code is usually one of these.

Questions about M79.6

Is M79.6 a billable ICD-10-CM code?: No. M79.6 is a non-billable header code. Code to a higher level of specificity using one of its child codes.
Where does M79.6 sit in the tabular list?: Diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (M00-M99), in the block Other soft tissue disorders (M70-M79).
What cannot be coded together with M79.6?: M79.6 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 M79.6 (M79) and apply to it just the same.