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Compare/W16.0 vs W17.3

W16.0 vs W17.3

W16.0 (Fall into swimming pool) compared with W17.3 (Fall into empty swimming pool), 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. W16.0 carries an Excludes1 note covering W17.3: “fall into empty swimming pool (W17.3)”

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. W17.3 carries an Excludes1 note covering W16.0: “fall into filled swimming pool (W16.0-)”

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

W16.0Fall into swimming poolW17.3Fall into empty swimming pool
Billing statusNon-billable header

Report instead: W16.011A, W16.011D, W16.011S, W16.012A, W16.012D

Non-billable header

Report instead: W17.3XXA, W17.3XXD, W17.3XXS

ClassificationV00-Y99 — External Causes of Morbidity (V00-Y99)V00-Y99 — External Causes of Morbidity (V00-Y99)
DefinitionFall into swimming pool is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (W16.0).Fall into empty swimming pool is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (W17.3).
7th characterThe appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category W16The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category W17
Includes
Fall into swimming pool NOS

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