According to the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (MMA), when must ICD-10-CM codes be updated?

The correct choice highlights that ICD-10-CM codes are updated specifically on April 1 and October 1 each year, and these updates must be implemented immediately by healthcare providers. This schedule is established to keep coding practices current, ensuring that healthcare data reflects new developments in medical knowledge, technology, and treatment methods.

This semi-annual schedule allows providers and systems to prepare for upcoming changes without long delays, aligning with the goal of maintaining accurate and effective coding practices critical for billing and record-keeping in healthcare. It emphasizes the need for timely updates to ensure that the codes used remain relevant and accurate for proper patient care and compliance with regulations set by Medicare and other entities.

The other choices suggest different update structures or timelines that do not reflect the actual protocol established by the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act (MMA), helping to clarify why only the specified semi-annual updates are considered correct.