Final answer:
For suspected, possible, or inconclusive cases of COVID-19, medical professionals should code the reasons for the encounter, such as signs and symptoms, exposure, or screening, instead of coding COVID-19 as the diagnosis, unless the infection is confirmed.
Step-by-step explanation:
When coding for COVID-19, it is important to consider the guidelines provided by such authorities as the International Classification of Diseases (ICD). For a scenario where COVID-19 is suspected but not confirmed, you would typically use the code that refers to the signs and symptoms the patient is experiencing.
According to the latest ICD coding guidelines, only a confirmed diagnosis is coded as COVID-19. If the test results for COVID-19 are inconclusive or pending, or if the patient presents with no symptoms but is being screened for COVID-19, clinicians should code the reasons for the encounter such as exposure or screening, and not COVID-19 as the diagnosis.