R40.2231 — Coma scale, best verbal response, inappropriate words, in the field [EMT or ambulance]
R40.2231 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code for coma scale, best verbal response, inappropriate words, in the field [emt or ambulance]. It is valid for submission on a claim.
7th character "1" — in the field [EMT or ambulance]
The following appropriate 7th character is to be added to subcategory R40.22-:
- 0
- unspecified time
- 1
- in the field [EMT or ambulance]
- 2
- at arrival to emergency department
- 3
- at hospital admission
- 4
- 24 hours or more after hospital admission
Inclusion terms
Alternative wordings a physician may use in the chart for this same code.
- Coma scale verbal score of 3
- Inappropriate crying or screaming (< 2 years of age)
- Screaming (2-5 years of age)
Risk adjustment
R40.2231 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
R40.2231 is named in 1 Medicare coverage policy — 1 listing it as supporting medical necessity. Which of them applies to you depends on your Medicare contractor, and coverage genuinely differs by state.
- A56645Billing and Coding: Controlled Substance Monitoring and Drugs of Abuse Testing
Related codes at this level
Codes that share R40.223. If R40.2231 is not quite right, the correct code is usually one of these.
- R40.2230Coma scale, best verbal response, inappropriate words, unspecified time
- R40.2232Coma scale, best verbal response, inappropriate words, at arrival to emergency department
- R40.2233Coma scale, best verbal response, inappropriate words, at hospital admission
- R40.2234Coma scale, best verbal response, inappropriate words, 24 hours or more after hospital admission
Questions about R40.2231
- Is R40.2231 a billable ICD-10-CM code?
- Yes. R40.2231 is a billable, specific ICD-10-CM code and is valid for submission on a claim.
- Where does R40.2231 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 cognition, perception, emotional state and behavior (R40-R46).