W16.131 vs W69
W16.131 (Fall into natural body of water striking side causing drowning and submersion) compared with W69 (Accidental drowning and submersion while in natural water), 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. W16.131 carries an Excludes1 note covering W69: “drowning and submersion while in natural body of water without fall (W69)”
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. W69 carries an Excludes1 note covering W16.131: “accidental drowning and submersion due to fall into natural body of water (W16.111, W16.121, W16.131)”
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. W69 carries an Excludes1 note covering W16.131: “accidental drowning and submersion due to fall into water (W16.-)”
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
| W16.131Fall into natural body of water striking side causing drowning and submersion | W69Accidental drowning and submersion while in natural water | |
|---|---|---|
| Billing status | Non-billable header | Non-billable header |
| Classification | V00-Y99 — External Causes of Morbidity (V00-Y99) | V00-Y99 — External Causes of Morbidity (V00-Y99) |
| Definition | Fall into natural body of water striking side causing drowning and submersion is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (W16.131). | Accidental drowning and submersion while in natural water is a non-billable ICD-10-CM category code (W69). |
| 7th character | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to each code from category W16 | The appropriate 7th character is to be added to code W69 |
| Includes | — | Accidental drowning and submersion while in lake Accidental drowning and submersion while in open sea Accidental drowning and submersion while in river Accidental drowning and submersion while in stream |
Derived from the official CMS ICD-10-CM tabular data (FY2026). Not billing advice; verify sequencing rules for the encounter. All data sources