Data Analysis
Medicare Costs by Specialty in Massachusetts
Medicare reimbursement rates vary significantly across medical specialties. This analysis examines average Medicare payments per service for providers in Massachusetts, ranked by reimbursement level. Understanding these differences helps contextualize specialty costs and resource allocation across the healthcare system.
Context: Industry payments to physicians are legally required to be disclosed under the Physician Payments Sunshine Act.
Receiving payments does not imply wrongdoing. Payments may reflect consulting expertise, research participation, or speaking engagements.
This data is provided to support transparency, not to render clinical judgments.
Average Medicare Payment by Specialty — Massachusetts
CMS Open Payments| # | Specialty | Avg Medicare Payment | Providers | Total Services |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thoracic Surgery | $245 | 76 | 18,586 |
| 2 | MOHS-Micrographic Surgery Physician | $215 | 23 | 52,264 |
| 3 | Pharmacist | $180 | 1 | 253 |
| 4 | Surgical Oncology Physician | $147 | 30 | 6,187 |
| 5 | Orthopaedic Surgery of the Spine Physician | $139 | 29 | 20,813 |
| 6 | Neurocritical Care Physician | $133 | 13 | 3,570 |
| 7 | Internist Chiropractor | $133 | 1 | 281 |
| 8 | Therapeutic Radiology Physician | $132 | 5 | 2,923 |
| 9 | Gynecologic Oncology Physician | $129 | 16 | 3,294 |
| 10 | Critical Care Medicine (Anesthesiology) Physician | $128 | 48 | 9,083 |
| 11 | Medical Toxicology (Emergency Medicine) Physician | $127 | 15 | 4,689 |
| 12 | Vascular Neurology Physician | $124 | 12 | 5,211 |
| 13 | Epilepsy Physician | $124 | 5 | 1,654 |
| 14 | Retina Specialist (Ophthalmology) Physician | $123 | 28 | 282,644 |
| 15 | Hospice and Palliative Medicine (Emergency Medicine) Physician | $122 | 1 | 832 |
| 16 | Vascular Surgery | $118 | 22 | 3,480 |
| 17 | Neurodevelopmental Disabilities Physician | $115 | 1 | 467 |
| 18 | Psychoanalysis Psychologist | $114 | 1 | 323 |
| 19 | Pediatric Emergency Medicine (Pediatrics) Physician | $113 | 1 | 181 |
| 20 | Colon & Rectal Surgery | $112 | 21 | 6,861 |
| 21 | Prosthodontics | $111 | 1 | 39 |
| 22 | Personal Emergency Response Attendant | $111 | 4 | 1,190 |
| 23 | Obesity Medicine | $110 | 5 | 1,987 |
| 24 | Neurology with Special Qualifications in Child Neurology Physician | $108 | 11 | 2,149 |
| 25 | Pediatric Adolescent Medicine | $106 | 1 | 628 |
| 26 | Cornea and External Diseases Specialist Physician | $106 | 6 | 5,506 |
| 27 | Massage Therapist | $106 | 2 | 458 |
| 28 | Skilled Nursing Facility | $106 | 1 | 252 |
| 29 | Vascular Surgery Physician | $105 | 69 | 73,875 |
| 30 | Trauma Surgery Physician | $105 | 8 | 2,801 |
State payment context — Massachusetts
CMS Open PaymentsAcross 37,033 Massachusetts providers with at least one disclosed industry payment over 2018–2024, the median provider received $242 in total payments, compared with a national median of $339 across 1,571,086 paid providers.
Massachusetts accounts for 3.1% of the $16,205,257,917 in industry payments recorded nationwide in this database, and its per-provider median runs below the national benchmark.
Top specialties by median industry payment — Massachusetts
| Specialty | Median per provider | Providers paid | Total payments |
|---|---|---|---|
| Orthopaedic Surgery of the Spine Physician | $12,309 | 29 | $6,239,740 |
| Sports Medicine (Orthopaedic Surgery) Physician | $12,084 | 38 | $1,463,019 |
| Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology Physician | $10,301 | 40 | $6,139,630 |
| Colon & Rectal Surgery | $5,289 | 28 | $484,995 |
| Vascular Surgery Physician | $4,370 | 105 | $2,454,738 |
Industry payments in Massachusetts by year
| Year | Total payments | Providers paid | Transactions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | $68,462,017 | 13,265 | 147,820 |
| 2019 | $76,907,585 | 13,421 | 150,066 |
| 2020 | $47,326,167 | 9,476 | 69,889 |
| 2021 | $96,268,552 | 13,795 | 132,110 |
| 2022 | $74,979,749 | 16,400 | 160,629 |
| 2023 | $66,270,138 | 18,295 | 190,942 |
| 2024 | $68,806,595 | 19,837 | 211,122 |
Methodology
Average Medicare payment per service calculated from Medicare Part B Utilization data for providers licensed in Massachusetts. Only specialties with at least one recorded procedure are included. Average reflects the mean of per-service payment amounts across all procedures within each specialty grouping, not total expenditure. Data source: CMS Medicare Part B Utilization, accessed via doctransparency.com database.