J42 vs J44
J42 (Unspecified chronic bronchitis) compared with J44 (Other chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), 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. J42 carries an Excludes1 note covering J44: “chronic asthmatic bronchitis (J44.-)”
Sole exception: when the two conditions are documented as unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).
No — do not report together. J42 carries an Excludes1 note covering J44: “chronic bronchitis with airways obstruction (J44.-)”
Sole exception: when the two conditions are documented as unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).
No — do not report together. J42 carries an Excludes1 note covering J44: “chronic emphysematous bronchitis (J44.-)”
Sole exception: when the two conditions are documented as unrelated to each other (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.A.12.a).
Yes, when both are documented. J44 carries an Excludes2 note covering J42: “chronic bronchitis NOS (J42)”
Excludes2 marks distinct conditions — both may be reported when both are documented.
Yes, when both are documented. J44 carries an Excludes2 note covering J42: “chronic tracheitis (J42)”
Excludes2 marks distinct conditions — both may be reported when both are documented.
Yes, when both are documented. J44 carries an Excludes2 note covering J42: “chronic tracheobronchitis (J42)”
Excludes2 marks distinct conditions — both may be reported when both are documented.
Side by side
| J42Unspecified chronic bronchitis | J44Other chronic obstructive pulmonary disease | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Billable | Non-billable header |
| Classification | J00-J99 — Diseases of the Respiratory System (J00-J99) | J00-J99 — Diseases of the Respiratory System (J00-J99) |
| Definition | Unspecified chronic bronchitis is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (J42). | Other chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (J44). |
| Includes | Chronic bronchitis NOS Chronic tracheitis Chronic tracheobronchitis | asthma with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease chronic asthmatic (obstructive) bronchitis chronic bronchitis with airway obstruction chronic bronchitis with emphysema |
| Use additional code | code to identify: exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (Z77.22) exposure to tobacco smoke in the perinatal period (P96.81) | — |
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources