Question: Are there any advantages to choosing critical care codes rather than standard E/M codes? For instance, if I provide t-PA for a stroke patient, am I better off selecting critical care than initial inpatient care codes? Pennsylvania Subscriber Answer: You may be better off choosing critical care codes, but only if the service meets the documentation requirements to report 99291 (Critical care, evaluation and management of the critically ill or critically injured patient; first 30-74 minutes) and +99292 (... each additional 30 minutes [list separately in addition to code for primary service]). As a rule, critical care reimburses at a higher rate than other E/M services. In your state (Pennsylvania), for instance, HGS Administrators pays about $256 for 99291. The same insurer pays about 20 percent less for the highest-level initial inpatient care code, 99223 (Initial hospital care, per day, for the evaluation and management of a patient ... high severity). Before selecting critical care, however, you must be sure that your service meets the following criteria: