ICD-10: the final nail in the coffin for our profession?

The International Classification of Diseases, 10 revision (ICD-10), is now just around the corner with its implementation date set for October 1, 2014. ICD-10 is not part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). It is owned by the World Health Organization, and its primary purpose historically has been for vital statistics and epidemiological data. ICD was first published in 1900, and ICD-9 was introduced in the United States in 1979. ICD-10 is being implemented by Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). On January 16, 2009, HHS published a final rule in which Secretary Sebelius adopted ICD-10 as the HIPAA standard to replace ICD-9 with implementation set for October 1, 2013. On August 24, 2012, HHS issued a new final rule that officially changed the implementation date from October 1, 2013 to October 1, 2014 primarily because of advocacy from the American Medical Association (AMA). HHS made the following statement in the Federal Register as part of the review process: