2027 ICD-10-CM Diagnosis Code Z62.21Child in welfare custody
Z62.21 is a billable ICD-10-CM diagnosis code for child in welfare custody. It is valid on HIPAA claims for fiscal year 2027 (October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027) and groups to MS-DRG 951. The code is restricted by the Medicare Code Editor to pediatric patients (age 0 through 17), not accepted as a principal diagnosis, and exempt from POA reporting. In AHRQ's Clinical Classifications Software (CCSR), this diagnosis falls under Socioeconomic/psychosocial factors.
Code Identity
Code Classification
Code EditsBilling
Medicare Code Editor checks that affect claim validity for Z62.21.
Present on Admission (POA)Billing
Z62.21 is exempt from POA reporting on inpatient claims to general acute care hospitals. Review the other POA exempt codes in Persons with potential health hazards related to socioeconomic and psychosocial circumstances (Z55-Z65).
Approximate SynonymsGuidance
Alternate terms and clinical phrases that map to this code.
- Child in care
- Child in family care - finding
- Child in foster care
- Child in welfare custody
- Child lives with grandparents
- Child protection finding
- Family disruption due to child in welfare custody
- Family disruption due to child returning to or placed in foster care
- Family milestones - finding
- Member of foster family
- Member of foster family, long-term
- Member of foster family, short-term
- Ward of court
- Wardship - finding
Instructional NotesGuidance
Instructions from the official ICD-10-CM Tabular List that apply to Z62.21: its own notes plus those printed at Z62.2, Z62, and Chapter 21. A note printed at a category, block or chapter applies to every code under it.
Includes
Further defines, or gives examples of, the content of the category.
- current and past negative life events in childhood
- current and past problems of a child related to upbringing
Applicable To
Conditions this code is used for: synonyms of the title or, for "other specified" codes, the conditions assigned to it. The list is not exhaustive.
- Child in foster care
- Child in welfare guardianship
Excludes1
Not coded here: the excluded code is never reported together with this one, unless the two conditions are unrelated.
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.
Notes
General instructions on how these codes are used.
- Z codes represent reasons for encounters. A corresponding procedure code must accompany a Z code if a procedure is performed. Categories Z00-Z99 are provided for occasions when circumstances other than a disease, injury or external cause classifiable to categories A00-Y89 are recorded as 'diagnoses' or 'problems'. This can arise in two main ways:
- (a) When a person who may or may not be sick encounters the health services for some specific purpose, such as to receive limited care or service for a current condition, to donate an organ or tissue, to receive prophylactic vaccination (immunization), or to discuss a problem which is in itself not a disease or injury.
- (b) When some circumstance or problem is present which influences the person's health status but is not in itself a current illness or injury.
Source: CMS ICD-10-CM Tabular List. How to read instructional notes.
Referenced in Other NotesGuidance
Instructional notes printed at other codes that name Z62.21, its category, or a range that includes it.
Excludes2 4
These codes carry an Excludes2 note naming Z62.21: its condition is not part of those codes, and both may be reported when the patient has both.
- Z59 Problems related to housing and economic circumstancesproblems related to upbringing (Z62.-) names Z62.-, which includes this code
- Z63 Other problems related to primary support group, including family circumstancesparent-child problems (Z62.-) names Z62.-, which includes this code
- Z63 Other problems related to primary support group, including family circumstancesproblems related to negative life events in childhood (Z62.-) names Z62.-, which includes this code
- Z63 Other problems related to primary support group, including family circumstancesproblems related to upbringing (Z62.-) names Z62.-, which includes this code
Code Also 3
These codes say Z62.21 may also be needed to fully describe the condition. The note gives no sequencing direction.
Index to Diseases and InjuriesGuidance
Alphabetical index entries that point to this code.
Upbringing, institutional Z62.22
in foster care Z62.21
in welfare custody Z62.21
Clinical ClassificationClinical
AHRQ’s CCSR groups this code into broader clinical categories.
Convert Z62.21 to ICD-9-CMHistory
The closest ICD-9-CM equivalents under the General Equivalence Mappings.
Code HistoryHistory
Questions About Z62.21Overview
What is the ICD-10 code for child in welfare custody?
The ICD-10-CM code for child in welfare custody is Z62.21 (sometimes written as Z6221). It is billable on HIPAA-covered claims from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.
Is Z62.21 (Upbringing away from parents) a billable code?
Yes. This is a billable ICD-10-CM code, specific enough to report child in welfare custody on HIPAA-covered claims from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027.
What MS-DRG does Z62.21 group to?
On inpatient claims, child in welfare custody maps to MS-DRG 951 (other Factors Influencing Health Status), which carries a relative weight of 0.5574. Higher weights mean higher Medicare reimbursement.
Can Z62.21 be a principal diagnosis?
No. The Medicare Code Editor rejects this code as a principal diagnosis because child in welfare custody describes a circumstance that influences health status rather than a current illness. Report it as a secondary diagnosis.
Who can Z62.21 be reported for?
The Medicare Code Editor checks child in welfare custody against patient demographics: this code is intended for pediatric patients (age 0 through 17). Claims outside these limits are flagged as inconsistent.
