H61.23 — Impacted cerumen, bilateral
Is H61.23 billable?
Yes — H61.23 is billable for FY2027. H61.23 is a valid, billable ICD-10-CM code at the highest level of specificity in its branch. H61.23 may be submitted for encounters from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.
H61.23 at a glance
| Code | H61.23 |
|---|---|
| Description | Impacted cerumen, bilateral |
| Billable | Yes |
| Code set | ICD-10-CM FY2027 |
| Valid for encounters | October 1, 2026 – September 30, 2027 |
What Medicare edits apply to H61.23?
The Medicare Code Editor screens inpatient claims before they are grouped. These edits name H61.23 directly.
CMS does not consider this code, on its own, sufficient justification for admission to an acute care hospital when reported as the principal diagnosis.
Which MS-DRGs does H61.23 group to?
H61.23 sits in MDC 03 and helps define the logic of 3 MS-DRGs (version 44, FY2027). Which one a stay actually groups to also depends on procedures and secondary diagnoses.
- 154Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Diagnoses with MCCmedical
- 155Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Diagnoses with CCmedical
- 156Other Ear, Nose, Mouth and Throat Diagnoses without CC/MCCmedical
How is H61.23 listed in the Alphabetic Index?
These are the routes through the Alphabetic Index that lead to H61.23. They show the wording a clinician may have documented, which often differs from the Tabular description.
- Ear › wax › left › with right
- Ear › wax › right › with left
Excludes2 — not included here — inherited from Chapter 8
The conditions below are not part of H61.23, but a patient may have both at the same time. When documentation supports it, H61.23 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)
- endocrine, nutritional and metabolic diseases (E00-E88)
- 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)
How long has H61.23 existed?
H61.23 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.