A community health center documents acute bronchitis as the reason for today's visit. The problem list also lists stable hypertension that was not assessed, treated, or managed during this encounter. What is the correct first-listed diagnosis approach for the outpatient claim?

For outpatient and physician-office encounters, the first-listed diagnosis is the condition chiefly responsible for the services provided. Chronic conditions on a problem list are coded as additional diagnoses only when they are treated, evaluated, or otherwise addressed during the visit or clearly impact management. Stable hypertension that was not assessed or managed should not be sequenced first and typically should not be reported for that encounter solely because it appears on the problem list.