A18.6 vs H66.3
A18.6 (Tuberculosis of (inner) (middle) ear) compared with H66.3 (Other chronic suppurative otitis media), from the official CMS tabular data. Do not report these codes together: the official tabular list marks them Excludes1.
Can these codes be reported together?
No — do not report together. H66.3 carries an Excludes1 note covering A18.6: “tuberculous otitis media (A18.6)”
Sole exception: when the two conditions are documented as unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).
Side by side
| A18.6Tuberculosis of (inner) (middle) ear | H66.3Other chronic suppurative otitis media | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Billable | Non-billable header |
| Classification | A00-B99 — Certain Infectious and Parasitic Diseases (A00-B99) | H60-H95 — Diseases of the Ear and Mastoid Process (H60-H95) |
| Definition | Tuberculosis of (inner) (middle) ear is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (A18.6). | Other chronic suppurative otitis media is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (H66.3). |
| Includes | infections due to Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Mycobacterium bovis Tuberculous otitis media | suppurative and unspecified otitis media with myringitis Chronic suppurative otitis media NOS |
| Use additional code | code, if applicable, for associated cachexia (E88.A) | code for any associated perforated tympanic membrane (H72.-) code to identify: exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (Z77.22) |
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources