2027 ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Code R03.0Elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension

ICD-10-CM Codes›R00–R99›R00-R09›R03

ICD-10-CM R03.0
CMSSource: CMS FY 2027 ICD-10-CM dataset · Effective Oct 1, 2026 – Sep 30, 2027

R03.0 is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension. It is valid on HIPAA claims for fiscal year 2027 (October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027) and groups to MS-DRG 314 through 316. The code is flagged as a questionable admission, since it rarely justifies inpatient admission on its own. As a symptom code, it should not be used as a principal diagnosis once a related definitive diagnosis has been established. In AHRQ's Clinical Classifications Software (CCSR), this diagnosis falls under Circulatory signs and symptoms.

Code Identity

ICD-10-CM Code
R03.0
Billable Status
Yes — Valid for Submission
Code Describes
Elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension
Short Description
Elevated blood-pressure reading, w/o diagnosis of htn
Parent Code
R03
Abnormal blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis

Code Classification

ChapterR00–R99Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified
SectionR00-R09Symptoms and signs involving the circulatory and respiratory systems
CategoryR03Abnormal blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis
This CodeR03.0Elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension

Code EditsBilling

Medicare Code Editor checks that affect claim validity for R03.0.

Questionable admission codes
Some diagnoses are not usually sufficient justification for admission to an acute care hospital. For example, if a patient is given code R030 for elevated blood pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension, then the patient would have a questionable admission, since elevated blood pressure reading is not normally sufficient justification for admission to a hospital. The following list contains diagnosis codes identified as questionable admission when used.

Approximate SynonymsGuidance

Alternate terms and clinical phrases that map to this code.

  • Blood pressure above reference range
  • Central venous pressure - finding
  • Central venous pressure above reference range
  • Central venous pressure outside reference range
  • Diastolic arterial pressure above reference range
  • Diastolic arterial pressure outside reference range
  • Elevated blood-pressure reading without diagnosis of hypertension
  • Jugular venous pressure - finding
  • Jugular venous pressure outside reference range
  • Mean arterial pressure above reference range
  • Prehypertension
  • Systolic arterial pressure above reference range
  • Systolic arterial pressure outside reference range
  • Venous pressure above reference range

Instructional NotesGuidance

Instructions from the official ICD-10-CM Tabular List that apply to R03.0: its own notes plus those printed at Chapter 18. A note printed at a category, block or chapter applies to every code under it.

Excludes2

Not included here: the excluded condition is not part of this code, but a patient may have both, so both codes may be reported.

From Chapter 18 (R00-R99) Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified applies to 774 codes
  • abnormal findings on antenatal screening of mother (O28.-)
  • certain conditions originating in the perinatal period (P04-P96)
  • signs and symptoms classified in the body system chapters
  • signs and symptoms of breast (N63, N64.5)

Notes

General instructions on how these codes are used.

On R03.0 itself
  • This category is to be used to record an episode of elevated blood pressure in a patient in whom no formal diagnosis of hypertension has been made, or as an isolated incidental finding.
From Chapter 18 (R00-R99) Symptoms, signs and abnormal clinical and laboratory findings, not elsewhere classified applies to 774 codes
  • This chapter includes symptoms, signs, abnormal results of clinical or other investigative procedures, and ill-defined conditions regarding which no diagnosis classifiable elsewhere is recorded.
  • Signs and symptoms that point rather definitely to a given diagnosis have been assigned to a category in other chapters of the classification. In general, categories in this chapter include the less well-defined conditions and symptoms that, without the necessary study of the case to establish a final diagnosis, point perhaps equally to two or more diseases or to two or more systems of the body. Practically all categories in the chapter could be designated 'not otherwise specified', 'unknown etiology' or 'transient'. The Alphabetical Index should be consulted to determine which symptoms and signs are to be allocated here and which to other chapters. The residual subcategories, numbered .8, are generally provided for other relevant symptoms that cannot be allocated elsewhere in the classification.
  • The conditions and signs or symptoms included in categories R00-R94 consist of:
  • (a) cases for which no more specific diagnosis can be made even after all the facts bearing on the case have been investigated;
  • (b) signs or symptoms existing at the time of initial encounter that proved to be transient and whose causes could not be determined;
  • (c) provisional diagnosis in a patient who failed to return for further investigation or care;
  • (d) cases referred elsewhere for investigation or treatment before the diagnosis was made;
  • (e) cases in which a more precise diagnosis was not available for any other reason;
  • (f) certain symptoms, for which supplementary information is provided, that represent important problems in medical care in their own right.

Source: CMS ICD-10-CM Tabular List. How to read instructional notes.

Index to Diseases and InjuriesGuidance

Alphabetical index entries that point to this code.

Clinical ClassificationClinical

AHRQ’s CCSR groups this code into broader clinical categories.

CCSR SYM012
Circulatory signs and symptoms
Default principal diagnosis: inpatient Yes · outpatient Yes

Patient EducationClinical

High Blood Pressure

Blood pressure is the force of your blood pushing against the walls of your arteries. Each time your heart beats, it pumps blood into the arteries. Your blood pressure is highest when your heart beats, pumping the blood. This is called systolic pressure. When your heart is at rest, between beats, your blood pressure falls.

The full article covers:

  • What is blood pressure?
  • How is high blood pressure diagnosed?
  • What are the different types of high blood pressure?
  • Why do I need to worry about high blood pressure?
  • What are the treatments for high blood pressure?

Read the full article at MedlinePlus

Courtesy of MedlinePlus, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.

Convert R03.0 to ICD-9-CMHistory

The closest ICD-9-CM equivalents under the General Equivalence Mappings.

ICD-9-CM
796.2 Elev bl pres w/o hypertn
Exact Match The mapping is direct, with no qualifiers.

Code HistoryHistory

FY 2016AddedAdded to the ICD-10-CM code setEffective October 1, 2015, the first year of ICD-10-CM.
FY 2017–2026No changes
FY 2027CurrentCurrent code set, no changesEffective October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.

Questions About R03.0Overview

What is the ICD-10 code for elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension?

The ICD-10-CM code for elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension is R03.0 (sometimes written as R030). It is billable on HIPAA-covered claims from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.

Is R03.0 (Abnormal blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis) a billable code?

Yes. This is a billable ICD-10-CM code, specific enough to report elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension on HIPAA-covered claims from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.

What MS-DRG does R03.0 group to?

When elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension is the principal diagnosis on an inpatient stay, it groups to MS-DRG 314, 316, 315, with relative weights from 0.6678 to 2.0871 depending on complications. Higher weights mean higher Medicare reimbursement.

Can R03.0 be a principal diagnosis?

Use it with care. This is a symptom code, so once a definitive diagnosis explaining the elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension is established, that condition takes the principal position instead.

Does R03.0 justify an inpatient admission?

Not on its own. The Medicare Code Editor lists this code as a questionable admission because elevated blood-pressure reading, without diagnosis of hypertension is not usually sufficient justification for admission to an acute care hospital.