Q67.8 vs Q76
Q67.8 and Q76 can never be reported together. ICD-10-CM declares them mutually exclusive with an Excludes1 note, meaning the two conditions cannot occur in the same patient — so exactly one of them is correct for any given encounter.
The official note, declared on Q76
congenital musculoskeletal deformities of spine and chest (Q67.5-Q67.8)
Q67.8
Other congenital deformities of chest
Billable
- Chapter 17
- Congenital malformations, deformations, chromosomal abnormalities, and genetic disorders
- Section
- Q65-Q79
Use when the record says
- Congenital deformity of chest wall NOS
Indexed under
- Anomaly, anomalous › chest wall (congenital) (unspecified type)
- Anomaly, anomalous › thorax (congenital) (unspecified type)
- Distortion › chest (s) (congenital)
- Distortion › thorax (s) (congenital)
- Flat › chest, congenital
Q76
Congenital malformations of spine and bony thorax
Not billable
- Chapter 17
- Congenital malformations, deformations, chromosomal abnormalities, and genetic disorders
- Section
- Q65-Q79
Excludes1 is not always absolute: where two conditions covered by the note are genuinely unrelated, CMS guidance permits reporting both. Document the reasoning rather than assuming it. More on Excludes1 vs Excludes2 · FY2027