Sunday, August 2, 2026

Earwax has four ICD-10-CM codes, and picking the wrong one is a denial. H61.23 is impacted cerumen, bilateral - and the only thing separating it from H61.21, H61.22 and H61.20 is which ears the provider documented. This is the laterality lesson in its purest form: there is no default ear, and 'unspecified' is a red flag to a payer, not a safe harbor. Two more traps follow right behind it - the word 'impacted' has to be in the note, and bilateral in the diagnosis does not automatically mean two units on the procedure.