S15.9XXA vs S15.9XXS
S15.9XXA (Injury of unspecified blood vessel at neck level, initial encounter) compared with S15.9XXS (Injury of unspecified blood vessel at neck level, sequela), from the official CMS tabular data. S15.9XXA and S15.9XXS code the same injury at a different phase of treatment.
Can these codes be reported together?
Same injury, other encounter phase. S15.9XXA and S15.9XXS code the same injury at a different phase of treatment, set by the 7th character.
The 7th character records the type of care given at the encounter being coded (ICD-10-CM Official Guidelines, Section I.C.19.a), so one encounter takes one of these, not both.
Side by side
| S15.9XXAInjury of unspecified blood vessel at neck level, initial encounter | S15.9XXSInjury of unspecified blood vessel at neck level, sequela | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Billable | Billable |
| Classification | S00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88) | S00-T88 — Injury, Poisoning and Certain Other Consequences of External Causes (S00-T88) |
| Definition | Injury of unspecified blood vessel at neck level, initial encounter is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S15.9A). | Injury of unspecified blood vessel at neck level, sequela is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code (S15.9S). |
| 7th character | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S15 | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category S15 |
| Includes | injuries of nape injuries of supraclavicular region injuries of throat | injuries of nape injuries of supraclavicular region injuries of throat |
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources