Skip to main content
Compare/K94 vs Z93

K94 vs Z93

K94 (Complications of artificial openings of the digestive system) compared with Z93 (Artificial opening status), 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. Z93 carries an Excludes1 note covering K94: “complications of external stoma (J95.0-, K94.-, N99.5-)”

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

K94Complications of artificial openings of the digestive systemZ93Artificial opening status
Billing statusNon-billable header

Report instead: K94.00, K94.01, K94.02, K94.03, K94.09

Non-billable header

Report instead: Z93.0, Z93.1, Z93.2, Z93.3, Z93.4

ClassificationK00-K95 — Diseases of the Digestive System (K00-K95)Z00-Z99 — Factors Influencing Health Status and Contact with Health Services (Z00-Z99)
DefinitionComplications of artificial openings of the digestive system is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (K94).Artificial opening status is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (Z93).
Edit this comparisonCheck a whole claim

Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources