Is R09.3 a billable ICD-10-CM code?

Yes. R09.3 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code and is valid for submission on a claim.

Where does R09.3 sit in the tabular list?

Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified (R00-R99), in the block Symptoms and signs involving the circulatory and respiratory systems (R00-R09).

What cannot be coded together with R09.3?

R09.3 carries an Excludes1 note, which means the conditions it lists can never be coded together with it on the same encounter.

R09.3

R09.3 — Abnormal sputum

Billable / specific codeICD-10-CM

R09.3 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code for abnormal sputum. It is valid for submission on a claim.

Excludes1 — never code together

These conditions cannot occur together. Billing both on the same encounter is a denial.

blood-stained sputum (R04.2)

Inclusion terms

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

Abnormal amount of sputum
Abnormal color of sputum
Abnormal odor of sputum
Excessive sputum

Risk adjustment

R09.3 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

R09.3 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.

A56580Billing and Coding: Computerized Axial Tomography (CT), Thorax
A57311Billing and Coding: Physical Therapy - Home Health

How R09.3 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 R09.3.

Abnormal, abnormality, abnormalities›sputum(amount) (color) (odor)
Excess, excessive, excessively›sputum
Sputum›abnormal(amount) (color) (odor) (purulent)
Sputum›excessive(cause unknown)
Excess, excessive, excessively›secretion›sputum

Related codes at this level

Codes that share R09. If R09.3 is not quite right, the correct code is usually one of these.

Questions about R09.3

Is R09.3 a billable ICD-10-CM code?: Yes. R09.3 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code and is valid for submission on a claim.
Where does R09.3 sit in the tabular list?: Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified (R00-R99), in the block Symptoms and signs involving the circulatory and respiratory systems (R00-R09).
What cannot be coded together with R09.3?: R09.3 carries an Excludes1 note, which means the conditions it lists can never be coded together with it on the same encounter.