What is ICD-10 code F40.232?

F40.232 is the ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for Fear of other medical care. An intense fear of medical procedures or healthcare settings that may prevent a person from seeking necessary medical treatment. It belongs to the ICD-10-CM chapter for mental, behavioral and neurodevelopmental disorders (f01-f99). F40.232 is a billable code, meaning it can be reported on a claim as a primary or secondary diagnosis when supported by documentation. F40.232 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. F40.232 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. F40.232 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 F40.232?

F40.232 does not map to a payment HCC under either the CMS-HCC V28 risk adjustment model or the older V24 model. V28 reached 100% phase-in for payment year 2026, replacing V24 which was used during the PY2024–PY2025 transition. Because neither model rewards F40.232 with a risk adjustment factor, it contributes zero to a Medicare Advantage beneficiary's RAF score in either version. Coders should check whether provider documentation supports a more specific child code that does map to a payment HCC.

What should coders know when reporting F40.232?

This is a blood-injection-injury type phobia Specify the type of medical care feared (dental work, surgery, examinations, etc.)

F40.232: Fear of other medical care — ICD-10

ICD-10-CM Code View

HCC Buddy Code Card

Digital ICD-10 code-book layout with official code detail, always-visible risk models, Code Trumping, and Buddy coding guidance.

Code lookupF40.232Effective periodFY2026 Apr Update (Apr 1-Sep 30)

FY 2026 Apr update / Mental, Behavioral and Neurodevelopmental disorders (F01-F99) / Anxiety, dissociative, stress-related, somatoform and other nonpsychotic mental disorders (F40-F48)

F40.232

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

Fear of other medical care

An intense fear of medical procedures or healthcare settings that may prevent a person from seeking necessary medical treatment.

Buddy Insight

Fear of other medical care captures patients with a phobia of medical settings, procedures, or healthcare encounters beyond injections and blood draws.

CMS-HCC V28

Not risk-adjusted for this model/period.

RAF 0

CMS-HCC V24

Not risk-adjusted for this model/period.

RAF 0

ACA/HHS

Not risk-adjusted for this model/period.

RAF 0

ESRD/PACE

Not risk-adjusted for this model/period.

RAF 0

RXHCC

Mapped

HCC 133

Personality Disorders, Anxiet...

RAF 0.0

Code Trumping

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Code Book Path

Official

F40.2Specific (isolated) phobias

F40.23Blood, injection, injury type phobia

F40.232Fear of other medical care

Inclusion Terms

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list inclusion terms for F40.232 in this effective period.

Excludes 2

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Excludes 2 notes for F40.232 in this effective period.

Related Child Codes

Official

F40.230Fear of blood

F40.231Fear of injections and transfusions

F40.233Fear of injury

Includes

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Includes notes for F40.232 in this effective period.

Excludes 1

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Excludes 1 notes for F40.232 in this effective period.

Code First

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Code First sequencing instructions for F40.232 in this effective period.

Use Additional

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Use Additional Code instructions for F40.232 in this effective period.

Code Also

Official

ICD-10-CM does not list Code Also instructions for F40.232 in this effective period.

Buddy Documentation Tip

HCC Buddy guidance

Specific medical care situations that trigger fear or anxiety

Marked fear disproportionate to actual risks of medical care

Avoidance patterns and impact on healthcare utilization

Duration of 6+ months

MEAT Support

HCC Buddy guidance

Specific medical care situations that trigger fear or anxiety

Marked fear disproportionate to actual risks of medical care

Avoidance patterns and impact on healthcare utilization

Duration of 6+ months

Audit Caution

HCC Buddy guidance

Using F40.232 when a more specific blood-injection-injury code applies (F40.230 or F40.231)

Not distinguishing medical care phobia from general anxiety disorder with medical setting triggers

Failing to code this when it is the underlying reason for missed appointments or treatment noncompliance

Confusing medical care phobia with health anxiety/illness anxiety disorder (F45.21)

Common Mistakes

HCC Buddy guidance

F40.231 (Fear of injections and transfusions) — Needle phobia is specific to injections; F40.232 covers broader medical care fears

F40.230 (Fear of blood) — Blood phobia is specifically about blood exposure, not medical care in general

F40.240 (Claustrophobia) — Fear of enclosed spaces may contribute to medical care avoidance (e.g., MRI) but is a separate phobia

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 F40.232 an HCC code?

No. F40.232 is a billable ICD-10-CM code but does not map to any HCC category in V28, V24, ESRD, or RxHCC.

HCC Category Mapping

RxHCCHCC 133, Personality Disorders, Anxiety, and Other Specified Mental Disorders

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 F40.232

For F40.232to 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 F40.232 during that encounter, not just copy-forwarded from a problem list.

What This Code Means

F40.232 is the ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for fear of other medical care. An intense fear of medical procedures or healthcare settings that may prevent a person from seeking necessary medical treatment. F40.232 sits in the ICD-10-CM chapter for mental, behavioral and neurodevelopmental disorders (f01-f99), within the section covering anxiety, dissociative, stress-related, somatoform and other nonpsychotic mental disorders (f40-f48).

F40.232 is a billable ICD-10-CM code but does not map to a payment HCC under the CMS-HCC V28, V24, ESRD, or RxHCC risk adjustment models. It can be reported on Medicare Advantage encounter data submissions but it does not contribute to a beneficiary's RAF score and therefore does not affect risk-adjusted payments to the plan.

F40.232 does not map to any HCC under V24 or V28. No ESRD mapping. RxHCC maps to RxHCC 133 at 0.0 weight. Non-risk-adjusting diagnosis. Coders reviewing F40.232 should check whether additional documentation would support a more specific child code in the same hierarchy that does map to a payment HCC, capturing the correct specificity is the highest-impact RAF improvement available within accurate coding.

HCC Buddy maintains structured V28 and V24 mapping, RAF weights, and MEAT documentation criteria for F40.232 sourced directly from the CMS-HCC risk adjustment model files and the CMS ICD-10-CM code set.

Coding Tips

•This is a blood-injection-injury type phobia
•Specify the type of medical care feared (dental work, surgery, examinations, etc.)

Clinical Significance

Fear of other medical care captures patients with a phobia of medical settings, procedures, or healthcare encounters beyond injections and blood draws. This can lead to avoidance of preventive care, chronic disease management, and emergency services. Understanding this phobia is critical for care coordination as it directly impacts healthcare utilization and patient outcomes.

Documentation Requirements

✓Specific medical care situations that trigger fear or anxiety
✓Marked fear disproportionate to actual risks of medical care
✓Avoidance patterns and impact on healthcare utilization
✓Duration of 6+ months
✓Functional impairment including impact on health outcomes
✓Accommodations or treatment approaches to facilitate care

Commonly Confused Codes

•F40.231 (Fear of injections and transfusions): Needle phobia is specific to injections; F40.232 covers broader medical care fears
•F40.230 (Fear of blood): Blood phobia is specifically about blood exposure, not medical care in general
•F40.240 (Claustrophobia): Fear of enclosed spaces may contribute to medical care avoidance (e.g., MRI) but is a separate phobia