What is the difference between ICD-10 and HCPCS codes?

Asked by: Cayla Towne  |  Last update: October 22, 2025
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ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes provide the reason for seeking health care; ICD-10-PCS procedure codes tell what inpatient treatment and services the patient got; CPT (HCPCS Level I) codes describe outpatient services and procedures; and providers generally use HCPCS (Level II) codes for equipment, drugs, and supplies for ...

What is the difference between ICD-10 and ICD O?

In contrast to ICD-10, the ICD-O includes topography for sites of haematopoietic and reticuloendothelial tumours. The morphology axis provides five-digit codes ranging from M-8000/0 to M-9989/3. The first four digits indicate the specific histological term.

What is the difference between ICD-10 and CPT codes?

While CPT codes are similar to ICD-10 codes, CPT codes identify services rendered, whereas ICD-10 codes represent patient diagnoses.

What is a HCPCS code used for?

The Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) is a collection of codes that represent procedures, supplies, products and services which may be provided to Medicare beneficiaries and to individuals enrolled in private health insurance programs.

How can you tell the difference between a CPT code and a HCPCS code?

CPT codes are entirely numeric and consist of five digits. HCPCS codes are alphanumeric, which means they use both numbers and letters. You'll always see a letter followed by four numbers. These structures make it easy to differentiate between an HCPCS code vs.

The Difference Between HCPCS and CPT Codes

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Is HCPCS the same as ICD-10?

ICD-10-CM diagnosis codes provide the reason for seeking health care; ICD-10-PCS procedure codes tell what inpatient treatment and services the patient got; CPT (HCPCS Level I) codes describe outpatient services and procedures; and providers generally use HCPCS (Level II) codes for equipment, drugs, and supplies for ...

What are the two main coding systems?

Two common medical coding classification systems are in use — the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) and the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT).

Does Medicare prefer CPT or HCPCS?

Today, the CPT coding system is the preferred system for coding and describing healthcare services and procedures in federal programs (Medicare and Medicaid) and throughout the United States by private insurers and providers of healthcare services.

What are the basics of ICD-10 coding?

ICD-10-CM codes consist of three to seven characters. Every code begins with an alphabetical character that corresponds to the chapter the code is classified in. The second and third characters are numbers. The fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh characters can be numbers or letters.

Are HCPCS codes still used?

National HCPCS Level II codes are maintained by CMS, but all private and public health insurers may use them.

Are HCPCS G codes for Medicare only?

As G codes are part of the national HCPCS Level II code set, they may also be used by non-Medicare insurers.

What are the two types of ICD-10 codes?

ICD-10-CM, which stands for International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, contains two code sets. They are ICD-10-CM, Clinical Modification; and ICD-10-PCS, Procedure Coding System.

What does CPT stand for?

The Current Procedural Terminology (CPT®) codes offer doctors and health care professionals a uniform language for coding medical services and procedures to streamline reporting, increase accuracy and efficiency.

Who uses ICD-O codes?

The International Classification of Diseases for Oncology (ICD-O) has been used for nearly 25 years as the standard tool for coding diagnoses of neoplasms in tumour and cancer registrars and in pathology laboratories.

What is the difference between CPT coding and ICD coding?

CPT® codes, or Current Procedural Terminology codes, are a standardized system used to describe the specific services and procedures provided to a patient. Unlike ICD-10 codes, which identify the diagnosis or medical condition, CPT® codes focus on documenting the what—that is, the treatment or service delivered.

Is ICD only for mental health?

The International Classification of Diseases, or ICD, is a classification system for all physical and mental diseases produced by the World Health Organization (WHO). It's used for diagnosis, research, reimbursement, statistical tracking, and mortality data.

What is the HCPCS code?

The Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) is a national, uniform coding structure developed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to standardize the coding systems used to process Medicare and Medicaid (Medi-Cal) claims on a national basis.

What is the difference between ICD and HCPCS codes?

ICD: International Statistical Classification of Disease and Related Health Problems. CPT: Current Procedural Terminology. HCPCS: Healthcare Common Procedures Coding System.

What is the first 3 digit of the ICD-10 code?

The first three characters of ICD-10-CM are the “category.” The category describes the general type of the injury or disease. The category is followed by a decimal point and the subcategory.

Who uses HCPCS codes?

HCPCS is used as a billing standard for representing medical procedures to Medicare, Medicaid, and other third-party payors. This standard coding language makes billing more accurate and efficient for healthcare facilities and insurers.

What CPT codes are deleted for 2024?

Existing codes 99441-99443 will be deleted. For additional information, refer to Appendices P and T in the CPT 2024 code book. The following E/M codes have been revised in the CPT 2024 code set.

What are F codes in medical billing?

F codes are further broken up into the following categories:
  • F00–F09: codes for organic, including symptomatic, mental disorders.
  • F10–F19: codes for mental and behavioral disorders due to psychoactive substance abuse.
  • F20–F29: codes for schizophrenia, schizotypal, and delusional disorders.

What does HCC mean in coding?

HCCs, or Hierarchical Condition Categories, are sets of medical codes that are linked to specific clinical diagnoses.

When to use CPT vs HCPCS?

CPT codes are used to report medical, surgical, and diagnostic services performed by healthcare professionals. HCPCS codes are used to report medical procedures and services to Medicare, Medicaid, and other health insurance programs.