AAPC Releases ICD-10 Code Conversion Tool

The American Academy of Professional Coders (AAPC) has released its ICD-10-CM online code conversion tool, which is now available at www.aapc.com/icd-10/codes. This valuable tool allows users to convert, or “map,” ICD-9-CM codes to ICD-10-CM codes (and vice versa) based on the General Equivalency Mapping (GEM) files published by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

The tool is free and available to the general public with no access code or password required and was developed by the AAPC, which expects this tool to become a valuable resource to medical coders and healthcare professionals as they begin to transition to the new ICD-10 system.

As a disclaimer, the AAPC advises those using the tool to keep in mind that while many ICD-9 codes map directly to ICD-10 codes, some may require a clinical analysis to determine which code or codes should be selected for the appropriate mapping.
ICD-10 is part of the international standard diagnostic classification for all general epidemiological, many health management purposes and clinical uses. ICD-10 differs from its predecessor, ICD-9, in that it contains more than 155,000 codes—nearly 10 times the number of codes in the ICD-9 set. The change to the new system, as mandated by Health and Human Services, will be the most challenging transition since the inception of coding. To aid the healthcare industry through this transition, the AAPC has dedicated a team of its coding experts to develop and lead trainings for health plans, providers, and facilities.

Source: American Academy of Professional Coders