Skip to main content

L12.3 vs Q81

L12.3 (Acquired epidermolysis bullosa) compared with Q81 (Epidermolysis bullosa), 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. L12.3 carries an Excludes1 note covering Q81: “epidermolysis bullosa (congenital) (Q81.-)”

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

L12.3Acquired epidermolysis bullosaQ81Epidermolysis bullosa
Billing statusNon-billable header

Report instead: L12.30, L12.31, L12.35

Non-billable header

Report instead: Q81.0, Q81.1, Q81.2, Q81.8, Q81.9

ClassificationL00-L99 — Diseases of the Skin and Subcutaneous Tissue (L00-L99)Q00-Q99 — Congenital Malformations, Deformations and Chromosomal Abnormalities (Q00-Q99)
DefinitionAcquired epidermolysis bullosa is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (L12.3).Epidermolysis bullosa is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (Q81).
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