ICD-10-CM (International Classification of Diseases, 10 revision, Clinical Modification) will replace ICD-9-CM soon, but exactly how soon though remains to be seen. The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently announced a proposed regulation (see link below) replace the ICD-9-CM code sets with the more advanced ICD-10-CM code sets by October 1, 2011.
Remember the days of the Y2K change when computer systems had to be updated to recognize the turn of the century? This required reprogramming computer systems to recognize 8 digit dates instead of the more common 6 digit date. I remember CMS (then HCFA) even cut down on the number of transmittals it issued so that maximum effort could be concentrated on making sure that the transition to the year 2000 went smoothly.
When you consider the conversion to ICD-10-CM, Y2K is nothing! Adapting to ICD-10-CM will mean a massive overhaul to the United States healthcare system.
It is interesting to note that the United States has been using ICD-10 since January 1, 1999 for reporting the cause of death on death certificates; however, we continue to use ICD-9-CM to report healthcare diagnoses in all settings and for inpatient hospital procedures. According to the American Health Information Management Association, the United States is the only industrialized nation not using an ICD-10 based classification system for morbidity purposes.
ICD and ICD-CM are two separate classification systems that are related but not the same. Newer versions are identified by adding a number, e.g. ICD-2, ICD-3, and so on. ICD-10 is the most current version. The CM stands for Clinical Modification. The intent of the modification is to serve as a tool in classifying morbidity data of medical records, medical programs, and for gathering health statistics.
The structure of ICD-10-CM is radically different from the ninth edition and the change in the number of codes is significant as well—17,000 codes in the nineth revision as compared to 200,000 codes in the tenth revision.
The number of characters in the ICD-9-CM ranges from three to five numerals (with V and E codes). The ICD-10-CM has three to seven alphanumeric digits.
In order for this transition to take place, a lot of things have to happen starting with software upgrades and training of clinical and administrative staff. There will be a huge learning curve on the entire healthcare system.
CMS released information via its physician services listserv that outlines their proposed plan for the change to ICD-10-CM.
