Y36.500A — War operations involving unspecified effect of nuclear weapon, military personnel, initial encounter
Is Y36.500A billable?
Yes, but Y36.500A is an unspecified code. Y36.500A is a valid, billable ICD-10-CM code for encounters from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. However, Y36.500A 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 Y36.500A — the more specific alternatives are listed below.
More specific alternatives
- Y36.510AWar operations involving direct blast effect of nuclear weapon, military personnel, initial encounter
- Y36.520AWar operations involving indirect blast effect of nuclear weapon, military personnel, initial encounter
- Y36.530AWar operations involving thermal radiation effect of nuclear weapon, military personnel, initial encounter
- Y36.540AWar operation involving nuclear radiation effects of nuclear weapon, military personnel, initial encounter
- Y36.590AWar operation involving other effects of nuclear weapons, military personnel, initial encounter
Y36.500A at a glance
| Code | Y36.500A |
|---|---|
| Description | War operations involving unspecified effect of nuclear weapon, military personnel, initial encounter |
| Billable | Yes |
| Code set | ICD-10-CM FY2027 |
| Valid for encounters | October 1, 2026 – September 30, 2027 |
| 7th character "A" | initial encounter |
What does the 7th character "A" mean in Y36.500A?
In Y36.500A, the 7th character A means initial encounter. The 7th character is required for Y36.500A to be a valid, complete code.
Same condition, different episode of care — switch the 7th character:
How is Y36.500A listed in the External Cause Index?
The External Cause of Injuries Index lists these routes under Y36.50, the nearest indexed parent of Y36.500A. This is a separate index from the Alphabetic Index and is where external cause codes are looked up.
- War operations › dirty bomb (injuries to military personnel and civilians during war, civil insurrection and peacekeeping missions) (by) (from) (involving)
- War operations › nuclear weapon (injuries to military personnel and civilians during war, civil insurrection and peacekeeping missions) (by) (from) (involving)
- War operations › bomb › dirty (injuries to military personnel and civilians during war, civil insurrection and peacekeeping missions) (by) (from) (involving)
- War operations › weapons › nuclear (injuries to military personnel and civilians during war, civil insurrection and peacekeeping missions) (by) (from) (involving)
Excludes1 — never code together — inherited from Y36
The conditions below can never be reported together with Y36.500A on the same claim. An Excludes1 note means the two conditions cannot occur in the same patient, so reporting both is a coding error.
How long has Y36.500A existed?
Y36.500A 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.