New and Revised Overweight and Obesity ICD-9 Codes

Definitions

Overweight: If a person has a body mass index (BMI) between 25 kg/m² and 29.9 kg/m²

Obesity: If a person has a BMI >30 kg/m²
Morbid obesity: Any person >100 lb overweight

    The difference between overweight, obesity, and morbid obesity is the severity of the condition and the potential outcomes. As the conditions progress and become more severe, the treatment and the associated health risks differ. ICD-9 codes have been revised and created to distinguish overweight patients from obese patients and to provide a mechanism of severity measurement based on body mass indexes. Physicians managing patients with wounds may find that these overweight and obesity codes help define the medical necessity for some products and services.