Coding Obesity

According to the World Health Organization, “overweight and obesity are defined as abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to health. The issue has grown to epidemic proportions, with over 4 million people dying each year because of being overweight or obese in 2017 according to the global burden of disease.”

Obesity is a complex disease involving having too much body fat. Obesity isn’t just a cosmetic concern. It’s a medical problem that increases the risk of many other diseases and health problems. These can include heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, liver disease, sleep apnea, and certain cancers.

In our ICD-10-CM codebooks, overweight and obesity are separated by coding. The coding for obesity includes the cause of the obesity such as obesity due to excess calories, drug-induced and with alveolar hypoventilation. Correct coding of obesity includes the cause and if the obesity is considered morbid. A secondary code for the BMI from category Z68- should also be used when the codes for underweight, overweight, or obesity are used.

Pay close attention to the ICD-10-CM guideline, I.C.21.C.3, for BMI (Body Mass Index), where it states, “BMI codes should only be assigned when there is an associated, reportable diagnosis (such as obesity). Do not assign BMI codes during pregnancy.”