T71.153A

Asphyxiation due to smothering in furniture, assault, initial encounter

FY2027Chapter 19: Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes/T66–T78 Other and unspecified effects of external causes

T71.153A (also written T71153A) is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for asphyxiation due to smothering in furniture, assault, initial encounter. It is part of the FY2027 code set, effective October 1, 2026. It is one of the 117 codes in category T71 (Asphyxiation). The Alphabetic Index lists it under 1 entry. Its 7th character, A, means initial encounter. Its coding notes include a Use additional code instruction, a Code also instruction, 7 Excludes1 entries and 2 Excludes2 entries.

7th character

Category T71 requires a 7th character.

Assembled code T71.153A Open code

Guidelines tip

From the FY2027 Official Guidelines. ICD10Ref adds no rules of its own.

The 7th character depends on whether the patient is in active treatment, not on who sees the patient. An aftercare Z code is not used for injury aftercare.

Guidelines I.C.19.aInjuries: application of 7th charactersRead the official text

Use additional code

Add the listed code as a secondary code, if known.

Also from chapter/block level (1 note)
Inherited from Chapter 19 Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
  • code to identify any retained foreign body, if applicable (Z18.-)

Code also

Two codes may be needed to describe the condition. This note gives no sequencing order.

Also from chapter/block level (6 notes)
Inherited from T66–T78 Other and unspecified effects of external causes
  • , if applicable, place of occurrence, such as:
    • highway rest stop (Y92.523)
    • school (private) (public) (state) as the place of occurrence of the external cause (Y92.21-)
    • service areas as the place of occurrence of the external cause (Y92.52-)
    • single-family non-institutional (private) house as the place of occurrence of the external cause (Y92.01-)
    • transport vehicle as the place of occurrence of the external cause (Y92.81-)

Excludes1

Not coded here. The listed conditions generally should not be reported together.

Inherited from T71 Asphyxiation
  • acute respiratory distress (syndrome) (J80)
  • anoxia due to high altitude (T70.2)
  • asphyxia NOS (R09.01)
  • asphyxia from carbon monoxide (T58.-)
  • asphyxia from inhalation of food or foreign body (T17.-)
  • asphyxia from other gases, fumes and vapors (T59.-)
  • respiratory distress (syndrome) in newborn (P22.-)

Excludes2

Not included here. Both codes may be reported if the patient has both conditions.

Also from chapter/block level (2 notes)
Inherited from Chapter 19 Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
  • birth trauma (P10-P15)
  • obstetric trauma (O70-O71)

Care settings

How CMS programs treat this code. These are CMS claim edits and list entries, not coverage or eligibility rules.

Home Health Primary

Accepted as the primary (principal) diagnosis on a home health claim. The Home Health Grouper assigns it to the MMTA - Other clinical group.

Source: CMS Home Health Grouper Software v07.2.26, effective October 1, 2026

Hospital CC

Counts as a complication or comorbidity (CC) when reported as a secondary diagnosis on an inpatient claim. It does not count when the principal diagnosis is one of the 39 codes in its exclusion list. Some MS-DRGs also ignore a CC or MCC that defines the DRG.

Source: CMS MS-DRG Definitions Manual v44, effective October 1, 2026, Appendix C

HAC

On the CMS list of hospital-acquired conditions (HAC 05: Falls and Trauma). When the claim reports it with a present-on-admission (POA) indicator of N (not present) or U (documentation insufficient), CMS does not pay the CC or MCC DRG for it. A POA of Y (present) or W (clinically undetermined) is paid normally.

Source: CMS MS-DRG Definitions Manual v44, effective October 1, 2026, Appendix I; CMS Hospital-Acquired Conditions (HAC) Coding page, POA indicator payment table

Notes

Also from chapter/block level (2 notes)
Inherited from Chapter 19 Injury, poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes
  • Use secondary code(s) from Chapter 20, External causes of morbidity, to indicate cause of injury. Codes within the T section that include the external cause do not require an additional external cause code
  • The chapter uses the S-section for coding different types of injuries related to single body regions and the T-section to cover injuries to unspecified body regions as well as poisoning and certain other consequences of external causes.

Alphabetic Index terms

Terms the official Alphabetic Index lists for T71.153. This code adds the 7th character. 1 entry