The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has mandated the replacement of the ICD-9-CM code sets with ICD-10-CM and ICD-10-PCS effective October 1, 2013. The transition to ICD-10 is anticipated to improve the capture of health care information and bring the United States in step with coding systems worldwide. ICD-10 implementation will radically change the way coding is currently done; the code-set will grow from its current 17,000 codes to more than 141,000, and the format is new with seven alpha-numeric codes instead of five numeric digits. These dramatic changes, and others, will require very significant effort to implement, and the time to prepare for ICD-10 implementation is now.   These pages are designed to serve as a resource for latest ICD-10 news, references and training offerings. There are links to free websites that offer proficiency testing in anatomy & physiology, medical terminology, and pharmacology to help managers and coders assess skills and knowledge required for successful transition to ICD-10. ICD-10 Implementation Timeline The last regular annual update to both ICD-9 and ICD-10 code sets will be made on October 1, 2011. On October 1, 2012 there will be only limited code updates to both ICD-9-CM and ICD-10 code sets to capture new technology and new di seases.  There will be no updates to ICD-9-CM on October 1, 2013 as the system will no longer be a HIPAA standard.     On October 1, 2014 regular updates to ICD-10 will begin.   The  ICD-9 Coordination & Maintenance Committee will continue to meet twice a year during the freeze. At these meetings the public will be allowed to comment on whether or not requests for new diagnosis and procedure codes should be created based on the need to capture new technology or disease. Any code requests that do not meet the criteria will be evaluated for implementation within ICD-10 on or after October 1, 2014, once the partial freeze is ended. To view the transcript of the meeting, go to ICD-9 Coordination & Maintenance Meetings     Click here to view the HIPAA Version 5010 Fact Sheet and Timeline Information