Find the Right ICD-10 Code for Anxiety
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Determining the right ICD-10 code for anxiety is essential for mental health clinicians.
Different types of anxiety present different symptoms and may require different treatment. Therefore, there are several anxiety ICD codes — each one refers to a specific condition that’s being treated.
Anxiety ICD codes range from F40 to F48, and fall under one of seven categories defined under the heading “Neurotic, Stress-related and Somatoform” disorders.
Using the correct ICD-10 code for anxiety helps accurately communicate the diagnosis and ensure effective management and treatment. It can also help the billing process to run more smoothly and prevent delays in insurance reimbursement.
The codes are updated each year on Oct 1. Bookmark this article as a reference to use next time you need to access the most common ICD-10 codes for anxiety.
What are the most common anxiety ICD codes?
ICD codes are International Classification of Disease codes developed by the World Health Organization (WHO). They’re used to identify health and disease trends across countries using a standard diagnostic language.
Additionally, ICD codes are used to describe a diagnosis when billing insurance.
The most common ICD-10 code for anxiety — and the most frequently used ICD code among U.S.-based behavioral health practitioners — is F41.1, which is the ICD code for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD). This condition is characterized by anxiety that is “generalized and persistent but not restricted to, or even strongly predominating in, any particular environmental circumstances” for at least six months, according to the official ICD-10.
Symptoms of GAD include:
- Persistent nervousness
- Trembling
- Muscular tensions
- Sweating
- Lightheadedness
- Palpitations
- Dizziness
- Epigastric discomfort
SimplePractice’s list of the top 20 ICD codes most commonly used by behavioral health clinicians when billing insurance provides insight into mental health diagnosis trends in America.
In addition to the generalized anxiety disorder ICD-10 code — which tops the list — it’s probably not surprising that several ICD-10 codes for anxiety appear among the top 20 U.S. mental health diagnoses.
Anxiety ICD-10 codes appear in eight instances on the list:
#1 Generalized anxiety disorder ICD-10: F41.1
#2 Adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood ICD-10: F43.23
#4 Adjustment disorder with anxiety ICD-10: F43.11
#5 Unspecified anxiety disorder ICD-10: F41.9
#6 Adjustment disorder, unspecified ICD-10: F43.20
#7 Post traumatic stress disorder, unspecified ICD-10: F43.10
#8 Post traumatic stress disorder, chronic ICD-10: F43.12
#10 Adjustment disorder with depressed mood ICD-10: F43.21
Some of the other common anxiety codes you may be searching for include:
F40.1: ICD-10 social anxiety disorder, aka social phobia
F41.0 ICD-10 panic disorder
F42: ICD-10 obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
How to find anxiety ICD codes
You can see the entire list of ICD-10 codes for anxiety under the “Neurotic, stress-related and somatoform disorders” section of the official ICD-10.
You can also find codes by searching the ICD-10 database.
The CMS.gov database is another good resource because it keeps codes up-to-date, and the codes are confirmed as billable.
While you may be able to find the ICD-10 code in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition (DSM-5), keep in mind that the diagnostic indicators and requirements of the DSM-5 don’t always align perfectly with the descriptions in the ICD.
What’s the ICD-10 code for anxiety and depression?
Finding the right ICD code for a client experiencing symptoms of both anxiety and depression can be more complex.
According to the official ICD-10, the code F41.2 for the diagnosis of mixed anxiety and depressive disorder can be used “when symptoms of anxiety and depression are both present, but neither is clearly predominant, and neither type of symptom is present to the extent that justifies a diagnosis if considered separately.”
However, in cases where both anxiety and depression are not linked to each other, and symptoms of each are severe enough to justify individual diagnosis, you should assign separate ICD codes to the two conditions.
See ICD-10 codes for depression.
While the client’s anxiety and depression may be connected, each condition may have its own characteristics and severity.
Anxiety and depression may also require separate tests to diagnose, as well as separate treatments and prescription drugs for management.
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