Grouper Output Format¶

group() returns a dictionary with the grouping result:

{
    "initial_drg": 293,
    "final_drg": 293,
    "initial_mdc": 5,
    "final_mdc": 5,
    "initial_drg_description": "Heart Failure and Shock without CC/MCC",
    "final_drg_description": "Heart Failure and Shock without CC/MCC",
    "initial_mdc_description": "Diseases and Disorders of the Circulatory System",
    "final_mdc_description": "Diseases and Disorders of the Circulatory System",
    "return_code": "OK",
    "pdx_output": {
        "code": "I5020",
        "mdc": 5,
        "severity": "CC",
        "drg_impact": "BOTH",
        "poa_error": "POA_NOT_CHECKED",
        "flags": ["VALID", "MARKED_FOR_INITIAL", "MARKED_FOR_FINAL"]
    },
    "sdx_output": [...],
    "proc_output": [...]
}

Top-level fields¶

Field	Type	Description
`initial_drg`	int \| null	DRG before HAC processing
`final_drg`	int \| null	DRG after HAC processing
`initial_mdc`	int \| null	MDC before HAC processing
`final_mdc`	int \| null	MDC after HAC processing
`initial_drg_description`	str \| null	Description of initial DRG
`final_drg_description`	str \| null	Description of final DRG
`initial_mdc_description`	str \| null	Description of initial MDC
`final_mdc_description`	str \| null	Description of final MDC
`return_code`	str	Processing status (see below)
`pdx_output`	dict \| null	Detailed output for principal diagnosis
`sdx_output`	list	Detailed output for each secondary diagnosis
`proc_output`	list	Detailed output for each procedure

Diagnosis output¶

Each entry in pdx_output and sdx_output contains:

Field	Type	Description
`code`	str	The diagnosis code
`mdc`	int \| null	MDC assignment for this code
`severity`	str	`"MCC"`, `"CC"`, or `"NON_CC"`
`drg_impact`	str	`"INITIAL"`, `"FINAL"`, `"BOTH"`, or `"NONE"`
`poa_error`	str	`"POA_NOT_CHECKED"`, `"POA_MISSING"`, etc.
`flags`	list[str]	Processing flags (e.g. `"VALID"`, `"MARKED_FOR_INITIAL"`)

Procedure output¶

Each entry in proc_output contains:

Field	Type	Description
`code`	str	The procedure code
`is_or`	bool	`true` if this is an OR (operating room) procedure
`drg_impact`	str	`"INITIAL"`, `"FINAL"`, `"BOTH"`, or `"NONE"`
`flags`	list[str]	Processing flags

Return codes¶

Code	Meaning
`OK`	Normal processing
`INVALID_PDX`	PDX not valid for version
`UNGROUPABLE`	Claim cannot be grouped (e.g. HAC issues)
`DX_CANNOT_BE_PDX`	E-code used as PDX
`HAC_MISSING_ONE_POA`	HAC code missing POA

Tip

When initial_drg and final_drg differ, HAC processing changed the DRG assignment. Compare them to understand the HAC impact on the claim.