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ICD-10-CM Code View

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FY 2026 Apr update / Certain infectious and parasitic diseases (A00-B99) / Viral hepatitis (B15-B19)

B18

Header CodeICD-10-CMOfficial ICD-10-CMCodebook guidance

Chronic viral hepatitis

Chronic viral hepatitis

CMS-HCC V28

0

0

RAF 0

CMS-HCC V24

0

0

RAF 0

ACA/HHS

0

0

RAF 0

ESRD/PACE

0

0

RAF 0

RXHCC

0

0

RAF 0

Code Trumping

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Code Book Path

Official
B1Viral hepatitis (B15-B19)
B18Chronic viral hepatitis

Inclusion Terms

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list inclusion terms for B18 in this effective period.

Excludes 2

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Excludes 2 notes for B18 in this effective period.

Related Child Codes

Official
B18.0Chronic viral hepatitis B with delta-agent
B18.1Chronic viral hepatitis B without delta-agent
B18.2Chronic viral hepatitis C
B18.8Other chronic viral hepatitis
B18.9Chronic viral hepatitis, unspecified

Includes

Official
  • Carrier of viral hepatitis

Excludes 1

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Excludes 1 notes for B18 in this effective period.

Code First

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Code First sequencing instructions for B18 in this effective period.

Use Additional

Official
  • code, if applicable, for ascites (R18.8)

Code Also

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Code Also instructions for B18 in this effective period.

Last updated: FY2026 ICD-10-CM Apr update, Apr 1, 2026 through Sep 30, 2026. CMS-HCC V28 is 100% phased in for payment year 2026.

What This Code Means

B18 is the ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for chronic viral hepatitis. B18 sits in the ICD-10-CM chapter for certain infectious and parasitic diseases (a00-b99), within the section covering viral hepatitis (b15-b19).

Header codes like B18 cannot be reported on claims directly — they organize child codes that share clinical context but the actual diagnosis must be coded to the highest level of specificity supported by the documentation. Coders should look at B18's child codes and select the one that matches the patient's documented presentation, since payers reject header codes submitted as the primary diagnosis. For risk adjustment workflows, header codes never contribute to a Medicare Advantage member's RAF score on their own; only billable child codes that happen to map to a payment HCC affect risk-adjusted plan payments.

HCC Buddy maintains structured V28 and V24 mapping, RAF weights, and MEAT documentation criteria for B18 sourced directly from the CMS-HCC risk adjustment model files and the CMS ICD-10-CM code set.

Includes

  • Carrier of viral hepatitis

Use Additional Code

  • code, if applicable, for ascites (R18.8)

Child Codes

Code Hierarchy

B18Chronic viral hepatitis
B18Chronic viral hepatitis

More on B18

Related condition guides

Referenced in blog posts

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