Q16.9 vs Q17
Q16.9 (Congenital malformation of ear causing impairment of hearing, unspecified) compared with Q17 (Other congenital malformations of ear), 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. Q17 carries an Excludes1 note covering Q16.9: “congenital malformations of ear with impairment of hearing (Q16.0-Q16.9)”
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
| Q16.9Congenital malformation of ear causing impairment of hearing, unspecified | Q17Other congenital malformations of ear | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Billable | Non-billable header |
| Classification | Q00-Q99 — Congenital Malformations, Deformations and Chromosomal Abnormalities (Q00-Q99) | Q00-Q99 — Congenital Malformations, Deformations and Chromosomal Abnormalities (Q00-Q99) |
| Definition | Congenital malformation of ear causing impairment of hearing, unspecified is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (Q16.9). | Other congenital malformations of ear is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (Q17). |
| Includes | Congenital absence of ear NOS | — |
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources