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A15-A19 vs B90

A15-A19 (Tuberculosis (A15-A19)) compared with B90 (Sequelae of tuberculosis), from the official CMS tabular data.

Summary

These codes should not be reported together because A15-A19’s tabular entry lists B90 under Excludes1.

Official rule
What is different?

The conditions named.A15-A19 is “Tuberculosis (A15-A19)”; B90 is “Sequelae of tuberculosis”.

Registry fact

Can these codes be reported together?

No.A15-A19’s entry carries an Excludes1 note covering B90: “sequelae of tuberculosis (B90.-)”. Both may be reported only when the documentation shows the two conditions are unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is there an Excludes1 relationship?

Yes.A15-A19’s tabular entry: “sequelae of tuberculosis (B90.-)”. The note covers B90.

Official ruleGuide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2

Is there an Excludes2 relationship?

None.Neither entry carries an Excludes2 note that names the other code.

Official rule

Is one more specific?

Not comparable.The codes sit in different categories; specificity is only comparable within one category.

Is one a parent or header code?

Both are headers.Both are non-billable headers, and neither contains the other.

Registry fact

Are there sequencing instructions?

None.Neither entry carries a Code First or Use Additional Code note that names the other.

Official rule

Are there other coding relationships?

None found.No laterality, encounter-phase, Table of Neoplasms, Table of Drugs and Chemicals, or history-versus-active-disease relationship links these codes.

MedCoder-derived

Official rule: a tabular instructional note or a section of the ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, quoted as published. Registry fact: the codes’ own published attributes (titles, billable status, position in the hierarchy, code set). MedCoder-derived: a reading MedCoder computes from those facts; it is not itself a rule. How to read the labels

Can these codes be reported together?

Conflict

Excludes1 conflict

A15-A19
Tuberculosis (A15-A19)
↔
B90
Sequelae of tuberculosis

What we found

No — do not report together.A15-A19 carries an Excludes1 note covering B90: “sequelae of tuberculosis (B90.-)”

Sole exception: when the two conditions are documented as unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).

What to review

Report one of the two. Both may be reported only when the documentation shows the two conditions are unrelated to each other.

Guide: Excludes1 vs Excludes2Check these on a claim

Why it matters

An Excludes1 note means the two conditions cannot occur together, so the pair should not be reported for the same encounter. The sole exception is when the conditions are documented as unrelated to each other.

Source / rule

CMS ICD-10-CM tabular instructional notes; ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a

Official guidance behind these answers

  • Section I.A.12.a — Excludes1 · applies to: Excludes1

    A type 1 Excludes note is a pure excludes note. It means “NOT CODED HERE!” An Excludes1 note indicates that the code excluded should never be used at the same time as the code above the Excludes1 note. An Excludes1 is used when two conditions cannot occur together, such as a congenital form versus an acquired form of the same condition. An exception to the Excludes1 definition is the circumstance when the two conditions are unrelated to each other. If it is not clear whether the two conditions involving an Excludes1 note are related or not, query the provider. For example, code F45.8, Other somatoform disorders, has an Excludes1 note for "sleep related teeth grinding (G47.63)," because "teeth grinding" is an inclusion term under F45.8. Only one of these two codes should be assigned for teeth grinding. However psychogenic dysmenorrhea is also an inclusion term under F45.8, and a patient could have both this condition and sleep related teeth grinding. In this case, the two conditions are clearly unrelated to each other, and so it would be appropriate to report F45.8 and G47.63 together.

    ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines FY2026

Quoted from the ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines for Coding and Reporting in effect for the release shown. The tabular notes above are the code-level instruction; these sections are the convention that says how such a note is applied. Source document (CMS PDF) · Release and checksum

Side by side

A15-A19Tuberculosis (A15-A19)B90Sequelae of tuberculosis
Billing statusNon-billable headerNon-billable header

Report instead: B90.0, B90.1, B90.2, B90.8, B90.9

ClassificationA00-B99 — Certain Infectious and Parasitic Diseases (A00-B99)A00-B99 — Certain Infectious and Parasitic Diseases (A00-B99)
DefinitionTuberculosis (A15-A19) is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (A15-A19).Sequelae of tuberculosis is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (B90).
Includes
infections due to Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis
—
Excludes1
congenital tuberculosis (P37.0)
nonspecific reaction to test for tuberculosis without active tuberculosis (R76.1-)
pneumoconiosis associated with tuberculosis, any type in A15 (J65)
positive PPD (R76.11)
positive tuberculin skin test without active tuberculosis (R76.11)
sequelae of tuberculosis (B90.-)
silicotuberculosis (J65)
—
Code first—
condition resulting from (sequela) the infectious or parasitic disease
Use additional code
code, if applicable, for associated cachexia (E88.A)
—

Notes are the code’s own tabular entry, quoted as published. A note that names the other code is the one the verdict above rests on.

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Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2027). A coding-rule comparison, not billing advice: payer-specific edits and medical-necessity policy are outside its scope. All data sources