Medicare Enrolled
Dr. Ernest Agatstein, MD
Urology Physician · Downey, CA
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology
— Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
Consulting-driven
Very High
DATA COVERAGE
Data in 4 of 4 federal sources
Measures public federal data availability — not provider quality
Informational, not a quality rating.
This page presents federal public records about Dr. Agatstein from CMS (NPPES, Open Payments, Medicare Provider Utilization, PECOS). It is not medical advice, an endorsement, or a judgment of clinical quality. Always consult the provider directly and a licensed clinician for medical decisions. Read methodology →
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What this data tells you about Dr. Agatstein
Dr. Ernest Agatstein is an urology physician in Downey, CA, with 20 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Agatstein performed 2,255 Medicare services across 1,425 unique beneficiaries.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Agatstein received a total of $11,693 from 44 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 268 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in urology physician. The majority of payments are for consulting, which typically reflects recognized clinical expertise sought by manufacturers. Patients may wish to discuss these relationships with their provider.
The Data Coverage level for Dr. Agatstein is Very High — reflecting how much public federal data is available about this provider. Patients are encouraged to use this data as one of several factors when choosing a healthcare provider.
✓ 20 years in practice
▲ Top 36% volume in CA
$11,693 industry payments
Medicare Practice Summary
Medicare Utilization ↗2,255
Medicare services
Top 36% in CA for urology physician
1,425
Unique beneficiaries
$60
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · How to read this →
~113 Medicare services per year of practice
Top procedures by volume
Ranked by number of services performed for Medicare patients. Avg. submitted charge is what the provider billed; avg. Medicare payment is what CMS paid.
| Procedure | Volume | Avg. paid | Avg. submitted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bladder ultrasound after voiding An ultrasound scan performed after urination to measure the amount of urine remaining in the bladder. |
499 | $9 | $60 |
| Chronic care management, first 20 min/month This service covers the first 20 minutes of clinical staff time directed by a healthcare professional each calendar month to manage chronic conditions. |
387 | $50 | $300 |
| Office visit, established patient (30-39 min) A follow-up office visit for an existing patient lasting between 30 and 39 minutes. The visit involves medical evaluation and management of the patient's condition. |
341 | $98 | $601 |
| Urinalysis, manual A manual laboratory examination of a urine sample to check for various substances and cells. |
213 | $3 | $20 |
| Office visit, established patient (20-29 min) An office visit for an existing patient lasting between 20 and 29 minutes. The visit involves medical evaluation and management of the patient's condition. |
171 | $70 | $441 |
| Complete ultrasound of retroperitoneum An ultrasound examination of the structures located behind the abdominal cavity. |
111 | $92 | $560 |
| Complete pelvic ultrasound An imaging test using sound waves to create pictures of the organs and structures within the pelvis. |
77 | $91 | $542 |
| New patient office visit (45-59 min) An initial office visit for a new patient lasting between 45 and 59 minutes. This code covers the total time spent by the physician or qualified healthcare professional on the date of the encounter. |
73 | $129 | $780 |
| Chronic care management, additional 20 min/month This service covers an extra 20 minutes of clinical staff time directed by a healthcare professional for managing two or more chronic conditions each calendar month. |
70 | $40 | $237 |
| Electronic assessment of bladder emptying A test that uses electronic monitoring to evaluate how well the bladder empties urine. |
63 | $7 | $39 |
| Lower leg neurostimulator electrode insertion A procedure to place an electrode in the lower leg for neurostimulation therapy. |
58 | $104 | $605 |
| Complex urodynamic pressure flow study A test that measures the pressure of urine flow in the bladder during voiding to evaluate how well the bladder and urethra are functioning. |
55 | $328 | $1,414 |
| Non-needle muscle activity measurement of bladder and bowel openings This procedure measures and records the electrical activity of muscles at the bladder and bowel openings without using needles. |
55 | $28 | $155 |
| Cystourethroscopy A diagnostic exam of the bladder and urethra using an endoscope to visually inspect the urinary tract. |
17 | $194 | $1,230 |
| Ultrasound of scrotum An imaging test that uses sound waves to create pictures of the scrotum and its contents. It helps evaluate the testicles and surrounding structures. |
15 | $93 | $525 |
| Complete ultrasound of abdomen and pelvis blood flow This procedure uses sound waves to create images of blood flow in the arteries and veins of the abdomen and pelvis. It evaluates the rate and direction of blood movement within these vessels. |
15 | $240 | $1,390 |
| Bladder irrigation and/or instillation This procedure involves flushing the bladder with fluid to clear it or introducing medication directly into the bladder. |
13 | $69 | $385 |
| Limited retroperitoneal ultrasound A focused ultrasound exam of the area behind the abdominal cavity to evaluate specific structures. |
11 | $49 | $295 |
| New patient office visit (30-44 min) An initial office visit for a new patient lasting between 30 and 44 minutes. This code is used when the total time spent on the date of the encounter falls within this range. |
11 | $62 | $540 |
How to read this data: This reflects Medicare patients only (typically 65+). Payment amounts are what Medicare paid the provider, not your out-of-pocket cost. A higher procedure volume generally indicates more experience with that procedure.
Industry Payment Transparency
Open Payments through 2024 ↗$11,693
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $1,670/year across 7 years
Top 17% in CA for urology physician
A higher payment rank reflects disclosed industry relationships (consulting, research, speaking) common among subspecialists — not wrongdoing.
44
Companies
268
Individual payments
All payments are legal and publicly reported · Not evidence of wrongdoing · How to interpret →
Payment profile
Industry payments classified by relationship type. Not all payments are equal — research and consulting reflect different relationships than speaking programs or meals.
Consulting
Expert advisory fees, typically reflecting recognized clinical expertise
$5,987 (51.2%)
Meals & Travel
Food, beverages, travel, and lodging — typically low-value
$5,188 (44.4%)
Speaking / Promotional
Speaker programs, honoraria, and industry-sponsored educational events
$518 (4.4%)
Payment trend by year
Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
2024
$909
2023
$896
2022
$7,537
2021
$590
2020
$205
2019
$847
2018
$710
Payments by company (2024)
Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$160
Dendreon Pharmaceuticals LLC
$141
Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc.
$133
Teleflex LLC
$122
PFIZER INC.
$110
Astellas Pharma US Inc
$100
ABBVIE INC.
$33
SUN PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES INC.
$33
IMMUNITYBIO, INC.
$23
Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$20
Axonics, Inc.
$18
PROGENICS PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
$17
Top 3 companies account for 47.7% of 2024 payments
All-time payments by company (2018-2024) ›
Dendreon Pharmaceuticals LLC
$6,040
Astellas Pharma US Inc
$1,072
PFIZER INC.
$532
Teleflex LLC
$477
Axonics, Inc.
$457
Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$330
C. R. Bard, Inc. & Subsidiaries
$274
KARL STORZ Endoscopy-America
$210
Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc.
$207
Coloplast Corp
$205
Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$171
PROCEPT BioRobotics Corporation
$170
Myriad Genetic Laboratories, Inc.
$161
ABBVIE INC.
$107
AbbVie Inc.
$106
Bard Access Systems, Inc.
$98
AbbVie, Inc.
$78
Ethicon US, LLC
$70
Foundation Medicine, Inc.
$66
Janssen Biotech, Inc.
$63
UROVANT SCIENCES INC
$62
Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC
$56
Myovant Sciences Inc.
$49
Photocure Inc
$48
Merck Sharp & Dohme Corporation
$44
Avadel Specialty Pharmaceuticals, LLC
$43
Blue Earth Diagnostics Limited
$42
Hollister Incorporated
$42
Medtronic USA, Inc.
$41
NeoTract Inc.
$36
Valencia Technologies Corporation
$35
COLOPLAST CORP
$34
Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$34
SUN PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES INC.
$33
TOLMAR Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$25
180 Medical, Inc.
$25
IMMUNITYBIO, INC.
$23
MEDIVATION FIELD SOLUTIONS LLC
$23
Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$20
ACCORD HEALTHCARE, INC.
$20
Progenics Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$19
PROGENICS PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
$17
Metuchen Pharmaceuticals
$17
Antares Pharma, Inc.
$14
Top 3 companies account for 65.4% of all-time payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
11272VU VDEO CYSTO CMOS CMAC KTUS DEFL · ADSTILADRIN · ANKTIVA · AQUABEAM ROBOTIC SYSTEM · AVEED · AquaBeam Robotic System · Axonics · Axonics r-SNM System · Axumin · BOTOX · BRAC CDx · Bard Urinary Drainage Bag · CAMCEVI · CONTINENCE CARE · Cysview · ELIGARD · ERLEADA · Echelon Flex · Erleada · FOUNDATIONONE · GEMTESA · INTERSTIM · KEYTRUDA · LCS · LUPRON DEPOT · Lupron · MYRBETRIQ · NOCDURNA · Noctiva · Nubeqa · ONLI · ORGOVYX · POSLUMA · PROGEL · PROVENGE · PYLARIFY · Prolaris · SOLESTA · SPEEDICATH · SpeediCath · Stendra · TOVIAZ · Titan · UROLIFT · UroLift · UroLift System · VESICARE · VISTASEAL · VaPro Plus Pocket · XTANDI · Xofigo · Xtandi · YONSA · eCoin Device Kit · myChoice CDx
Should you be concerned? Payments from pharmaceutical and device companies are legal and common — 57% of U.S. physicians receive at least one. They often reflect legitimate consulting, research, or education. What matters is whether a recommended drug or device appears in your doctor's payment records. If so, consider asking your doctor about it. How to interpret this data →
The majority of payments (51%) are consulting fees, which typically reflect recognized clinical expertise sought by manufacturers.
Geographic Context
Urology physicians within 10 mi
472
Per 100K population
4.8
County median income
$87,760
Nearest hospital
PIH HEALTH DOWNEY HOSPITAL
0.0 mi
0.0 mi
Data Sources
| Provider Registry | ✓ NPPES | Weekly updates |
| Medicare Enrollment | ✓ PECOS | Monthly updates |
| Practice Data | ✓ Medicare Util. | Annual (CY lag) |
| Industry Payments | ✓ Open Payments | CY 2024 |
| Disciplinary History | — Not public | N/A |
This provider has data in 4 of 4 available federal datasets, with a Data Coverage level of Very High. This reflects how much public data is available about a provider. How we calculate this →
Summary
Dr. Agatstein is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, with consulting-driven industry engagement in the top 17% of CA peers, with 20 years of NPI registration.
This summary is auto-generated from federal data, describing data availability and patterns. Read our methodology →
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Dr. Agatstein experienced with bladder ultrasound after voiding?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Agatstein performed 499 bladder ultrasound after voiding services. Research suggests that higher procedure volume is often associated with better outcomes, particularly for complex procedures. Note that Medicare data only captures patients aged 65 and older, so the total practice volume across all patients is likely higher.
Does Dr. Agatstein receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Agatstein received a total of $11,693 from 44 companies across 268 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common among physicians — 57% of all U.S. physicians receive at least one industry payment. Patients may wish to ask their doctor about these relationships, especially if a recommended drug or device appears in the payment records.
How do Dr. Agatstein's costs compare to other urology physicians in Downey?
Dr. Agatstein's average Medicare payment per service is $60. Note that these figures represent what Medicare pays, not your out-of-pocket cost, which depends on your specific insurance plan and deductible. Procedure-level data above shows both what was submitted and what Medicare paid for each service type.
What does Data Coverage mean?
Data Coverage (currently Very High for Dr. Agatstein) measures how much public federal data is available about a provider. It is not a quality rating. A "Very High" or "High" level means the provider has data across multiple federal sources (NPPES, PECOS, Medicare Utilization, Open Payments), indicating a long track record of practice, Medicare participation, and industry disclosure. A "Low" or "Moderate" level may simply mean the provider is newer, does not see Medicare patients, or has not received any industry payments — none of which are inherently negative. Read our full methodology →
Is this data up to date?
Each data source has its own update cycle. Provider registry data (NPPES) is updated weekly. Medicare enrollment (PECOS) is updated monthly. Medicare practice data has a ~2 year lag — the most recent available is typically 2 years prior. Industry payment data (Open Payments) is published annually, usually in June, covering the prior calendar year. We display the data date prominently on each section so you always know how current it is. See our data freshness policy →
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About this page
All data on this page is sourced verbatim from public federal records published by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): NPPES ↗, Open Payments ↗, Medicare Provider Utilization ↗, and PECOS. Publication is mandated by the Physician Payments Sunshine Act (§6002 ACA, 42 U.S.C. §1320a-7h) and the Freedom of Information Act.
This page is not medical advice, an endorsement, a recommendation, or a quality rating. Data Coverage reflects data completeness — how much federal information exists for this provider — not clinical performance, patient outcomes, or quality of care. Always verify information directly with the provider and consult a licensed clinician before making medical decisions.
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