ICDcodes.org
FY2027

H54.8 — Legal blindness, as defined in USA

Billable

Is H54.8 billable?

Yes — H54.8 is billable for FY2027. H54.8 is a valid, billable ICD-10-CM code at the highest level of specificity in its branch. H54.8 may be submitted for encounters from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.

H54.8 at a glance

CodeH54.8
DescriptionLegal blindness, as defined in USA
BillableYes
Code setICD-10-CM FY2027
Valid for encountersOctober 1, 2026 – September 30, 2027

Which MS-DRGs does H54.8 group to?

H54.8 sits in MDC 02 and helps define the logic of 2 MS-DRGs (version 44, FY2027). Which one a stay actually groups to also depends on procedures and secondary diagnoses.

  • 124Other Disorders of the Eye with MCC or Thrombolytic Agentmedical
  • 125Other Disorders of the Eye without MCCmedical

How is H54.8 listed in the Alphabetic Index?

These are the routes through the Alphabetic Index that lead to H54.8. They show the wording a clinician may have documented, which often differs from the Tabular description.

  • Blindness › legal (acquired) (congenital) (both eyes)

Excludes1 — never code together

The conditions below can never be reported together with H54.8 on the same claim. An Excludes1 note means the two conditions cannot occur in the same patient, so reporting both is a coding error.

  • legal blindness with specification of impairment level (H54.0-H54.7)

Inclusion terms

Alternative wording in documentation that is classified to H54.8.

  • Blindness NOS according to USA definition

Note

  • The table below gives a classification of severity of visual impairment recommended by a WHO Study Group on the Prevention of Blindness, Geneva, 6-10 November 1972.
  • The term 'low vision' in category H54 comprises categories 1 and 2 of the table, the term 'blindness' categories 3, 4 and 5, and the term 'unqualified visual loss' category 9.
  • If the extent of the visual field is taken into account, patients with a field no greater than 10 but greater than 5 around central fixation should be placed in category 3 and patients with a field no greater than 5 around central fixation should be placed in category 4, even if the central acuity is not impaired.

Excludes1 — never code together — inherited from H54

The conditions below can never be reported together with H54.8 on the same claim. An Excludes1 note means the two conditions cannot occur in the same patient, so reporting both is a coding error.

Code first — inherited from H54

The underlying condition below must be sequenced before H54.8. H54.8 describes a manifestation and cannot be the principal or first-listed diagnosis.

  • any associated underlying cause of the blindness

Excludes2 — not included here — inherited from Chapter 7

The conditions below are not part of H54.8, but a patient may have both at the same time. When documentation supports it, H54.8 and the excluded code may both be reported.

  • certain conditions originating in the perinatal period (P04-P96)
  • certain infectious and parasitic diseases (A00-B99)
  • complications of pregnancy, childbirth and the puerperium (O00-O9A)
  • congenital malformations, deformations, and chromosomal abnormalities (Q00-Q99)
  • diabetes mellitus related eye conditions (E09.3-, E10.3-, E11.3-, E13.3-)
  • endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases (E00-E88)
  • injury (trauma) of eye and orbit (S05.-)
  • injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes (S00-T88)
  • neoplasms (C00-D49)
  • symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified (R00-R94)
  • syphilis related eye disorders (A50.01, A50.3-, A51.43, A52.71)

How long has H54.8 existed?

H54.8 has been in ICD-10-CM since at least FY2016, the earliest fiscal year on record here.

Derived from the official order files for FY2016–FY2026. FY2017 and FY2020 publish no order file, so those years are not covered.

Which codes are confused with H54.8?

ICD-10-CM declares these codes mutually exclusive with H54.8 — exactly one of each pair can be correct for a given encounter.

Which conditions are coded to H54.8?

What other codes are in the H54 family? (8)