H68.009 — Unspecified Eustachian salpingitis, unspecified ear
Is H68.009 billable?
Yes, but H68.009 is an unspecified code. H68.009 is a valid, billable ICD-10-CM code for encounters from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. However, H68.009 is an unspecified or catch-all code. Payers apply additional scrutiny to unspecified codes and many deny them when the medical record supports a more specific option, so check the documentation before selecting H68.009 — the more specific alternatives are listed below.
H68.009 at a glance
| Code | H68.009 |
|---|---|
| Description | Unspecified Eustachian salpingitis, unspecified ear |
| Billable | Yes |
| Code set | ICD-10-CM FY2027 |
| Valid for encounters | October 1, 2026 – September 30, 2027 |
Which MS-DRGs does H68.009 group to?
H68.009 sits in MDC 03 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.
- 152Otitis Media and URI with MCCmedical
- 153Otitis Media and URI without MCCmedical
How is H68.009 listed in the Alphabetic Index?
These are the routes through the Alphabetic Index that lead to H68.009. They show the wording a clinician may have documented, which often differs from the Tabular description.
- Catarrh, catarrhal › eustachian (acute) (febrile) (infectious) (inflammation)
Excludes2 — not included here — inherited from Chapter 8
The conditions below are not part of H68.009, but a patient may have both at the same time. When documentation supports it, H68.009 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 H68.009 existed?
H68.009 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.