What is ICD-10 code F10.99?

F10.99 is the ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for Alcohol use, unspecified with unspecified alcohol-induced disorder. A person has a pattern of alcohol use that is causing problems, but the specific type of alcohol-related disorder is not clearly documented or specified. F10.99 is a billable code, meaning it can be reported on a claim as a primary or secondary diagnosis when supported by documentation. F10.99 is part of the FY2026 ICD-10-CM code set published by the CMS National Center for Health Statistics and used on Medicare, Medicaid, and commercial claims in the United States.

Yes. F10.99 is a billable ICD-10-CM code that can be reported on professional and institutional claims as a primary or secondary diagnosis when the provider documentation supports the specific condition described. Billable codes in ICD-10-CM are coded to the highest level of specificity available for the documented diagnosis. F10.99 is current for fiscal year 2026 and remains in the active CMS ICD-10-CM code set published by the National Center for Health Statistics.

What is the V28 vs V24 difference for F10.99?

CMS phased in the V28 risk adjustment model over payment years 2024 (33%), 2025 (67%), and 2026 (100%), replacing V24. V28 consolidates HCC categories, removes some lower-acuity conditions, and recalibrates RAF weights across the entire model. F10.99 was a payment HCC under V24 (Drug/Alcohol Dependence) but the V28 recalibration removed it from the risk adjustment model. Both models can still appear in legacy data and in payer-specific lookback periods.

What should coders know when reporting F10.99?

Use this code only when the specific alcohol-induced disorder cannot be determined from documentation Review clinical notes to see if a more specific F10 code (such as F10.10 for dependence or F10.20 for other disorders) would be more appropriate Because F10.99 maps to a payment HCC, the documentation must also satisfy MEAT criteria (Monitor, Evaluate, Assess, or Treat) for the encounter to count toward the patient's risk adjustment score.

F10.99: Alcohol use, unspecified with unspecified

ICD-10-CM Code View

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Code lookupF10.99Effective periodFY2026 Apr Update (Apr 1-Sep 30)

FY 2026 Apr update / Mental, Behavioral and Neurodevelopmental disorders (F01-F99) / Mental and behavioral disorders due to psychoactive substance use (F10-F19)

F10.99

Billable / SpecificICD-10-CMOfficial ICD-10-CMCodebook guidance

Alcohol use, unspecified with unspecified alcohol-induced disorder

A person has a pattern of alcohol use that is causing problems, but the specific type of alcohol-related disorder is not clearly documented or specified.

Buddy Insight

Alcohol use, unspecified with unspecified alcohol-induced disorder is the least specific code in the alcohol-induced disorder category.

CMS-HCC V28

Not risk-adjusted for this model/period.

RAF 0

CMS-HCC V24

Mapped

HCC 55

Drug/Alcohol Dependence

RAF 0.334

ACA/HHS

Not risk-adjusted for this model/period.

RAF 0

ESRD/PACE

Mapped

HCC 55

Drug/Alcohol Dependence

RAF 0.0

RXHCC

Not risk-adjusted for this model/period.

RAF 0

Code Trumping

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Code Book Path

Official

F10Alcohol related disorders

F10.9Alcohol use, unspecified

F10.99Alcohol use, unspecified with unspecified alcohol-induced disorder

Inclusion Terms

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list inclusion terms for F10.99 in this effective period.

Excludes 2

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Excludes 2 notes for F10.99 in this effective period.

Related Child Codes

Official

F10.90Alcohol use, unspecified, uncomplicated

F10.91Alcohol use, unspecified, in remission

F10.92Alcohol use, unspecified with intoxication

F10.93Alcohol use, unspecified with withdrawal

F10.94Alcohol use, unspecified with alcohol-induced mood disorder

Includes

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Includes notes for F10.99 in this effective period.

Excludes 1

Official

alcohol abuse (F10.1-)
alcohol dependence (F10.2-)

Code First

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Code First sequencing instructions for F10.99 in this effective period.

Use Additional

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Use Additional Code instructions for F10.99 in this effective period.

Code Also

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Code Also instructions for F10.99 in this effective period.

Buddy Documentation Tip

HCC Buddy guidance

Provider documentation of an alcohol-related disorder, even if not further specified

Evidence of alcohol use contributing to the health problem

Documentation supporting why a more specific code cannot be assigned

Assessment of alcohol use pattern (ideally to classify as abuse or dependence)

MEAT Support

HCC Buddy guidance

Provider documentation of an alcohol-related disorder, even if not further specified

Evidence of alcohol use contributing to the health problem

Documentation supporting why a more specific code cannot be assigned

Assessment of alcohol use pattern (ideally to classify as abuse or dependence)

Audit Caution

HCC Buddy guidance

Defaulting to this code without attempting to query the provider for more specificity

Using this code when the record contains enough detail to support a more specific F10 code

Confusing unspecified use with abuse or dependence — each has distinct clinical criteria

Not recognizing that this code drops out of HCC mapping in V28, potentially losing risk adjustment value

Common Mistakes

HCC Buddy guidance

F10.10 — Alcohol abuse, uncomplicated: use when abuse is documented without a specific induced disorder

F10.20 — Alcohol dependence, uncomplicated: use when dependence is documented

F10.988 — Alcohol use, unspecified with other alcohol-induced disorder: use when the specific disorder is identified but has no unique code

Z72.89 — Other problems related to lifestyle (alcohol use): use for non-pathological alcohol use

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.

Is F10.99 an HCC code?

Yes. F10.99 maps to Drug/Alcohol Dependence under the V24 model but is not retained in V28.

HCC Category Mapping

V24HCC 55, Drug/Alcohol Dependence

0.334

ESRDHCC 55, Drug/Alcohol Dependence

0.000

RAF weights shown are the community, non-dual, aged base weights from the CMS risk adjustment model file. Actual per-patient RAF contribution depends on member segment, interactions, and the model year used by the payer. V28 is the CMS-HCC model phased in over payment years 2024–2026; V24 remains in use during the transition and for historical data.

MEAT Criteria for F10.99

For F10.99to count as a valid HCC diagnosis in a given encounter, the provider's documentation must show MEAT: Monitor, Evaluate, Assess, or Treat. A diagnosis from a prior year does not carry forward automatically, it has to be re-documented and supported each calendar year.

MMonitor: signs, symptoms, disease progression, or lab trending documented in the note
EEvaluate: test results, medication response, or physical findings reviewed by the provider
AAssess: explicit mention in the assessment or plan with acknowledgment of status
TTreat: medication, referral, procedure, therapy, or counseling tied to the diagnosis

Only one of M/E/A/T is required to support the code, but the documentation must be specific enough to show that the provider actually addressed F10.99 during that encounter, not just copy-forwarded from a problem list.

What This Code Means

F10.99 is the ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for alcohol use, unspecified with unspecified alcohol-induced disorder. A person has a pattern of alcohol use that is causing problems, but the specific type of alcohol-related disorder is not clearly documented or specified. F10.99 sits in the ICD-10-CM chapter for mental, behavioral and neurodevelopmental disorders (f01-f99), within the section covering mental and behavioral disorders due to psychoactive substance use (f10-f19).

Under the older CMS-HCC V24 model, F10.99 maps to Drug/Alcohol Dependence (HCC 55) with a community, non-dual, aged base RAF weight of 0.334. V28 is the CMS-HCC risk adjustment model that reached 100% phase-in for payment year 2026, replacing V24 which was used during the PY2024–PY2025 transition.

Use this code only when the specific alcohol-induced disorder cannot be determined from documentation. Because F10.99 maps to a payment HCC, the provider's documentation must satisfy MEAT criteria (Monitor, Evaluate, Assess, or Treat) for the encounter to count toward the patient's Medicare Advantage risk adjustment score. When documentation is ambiguous, coders should issue a provider query rather than assume the highest-specificity variant.

HCC Buddy maintains structured V28 and V24 mapping, RAF weights, and MEAT documentation criteria for F10.99 sourced directly from the CMS-HCC risk adjustment model files and the CMS ICD-10-CM code set.

Coding Tips

•Use this code only when the specific alcohol-induced disorder cannot be determined from documentation
•Review clinical notes to see if a more specific F10 code (such as F10.10 for dependence or F10.20 for other disorders) would be more appropriate

Clinical Significance

Alcohol use, unspecified with unspecified alcohol-induced disorder is the least specific code in the alcohol-induced disorder category. It indicates an alcohol-related health problem exists but neither the use pattern nor the specific disorder is documented. This represents a significant documentation improvement opportunity and should trigger a provider query whenever possible.

Documentation Requirements

✓Provider documentation of an alcohol-related disorder, even if not further specified
✓Evidence of alcohol use contributing to the health problem
✓Documentation supporting why a more specific code cannot be assigned
✓Assessment of alcohol use pattern (ideally to classify as abuse or dependence)

Commonly Confused Codes

•F10.10: Alcohol abuse, uncomplicated: use when abuse is documented without a specific induced disorder
•F10.20: Alcohol dependence, uncomplicated: use when dependence is documented
•F10.988: Alcohol use, unspecified with other alcohol-induced disorder: use when the specific disorder is identified but has no unique code
•Z72.89: Other problems related to lifestyle (alcohol use): use for non-pathological alcohol use