Medicare Enrolled
Dr. Stephen Ryu, MD
Neurological Surgery · Stanford, 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. Ryu 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. Ryu
Dr. Stephen Ryu is a neurological surgery specialist in Stanford, CA, with 19 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Ryu performed 914 Medicare services across 753 unique beneficiaries.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Ryu received a total of $1,144,713 from 36 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 1104 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in neurological surgery. 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. Ryu 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.
✓ 19 years in practice
▲ Top 11% volume in CA
$1,144,713 industry payments
Medicare Practice Summary
Medicare Utilization ↗914
Medicare services
Top 11% in CA for neurological surgery
753
Unique beneficiaries
$239
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · How to read this →
~48 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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. |
238 | $83 | $247 |
| 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. |
157 | $151 | $554 |
| Office visit, established patient, complex (40-54 min) An office or outpatient visit for an existing patient lasting between 40 and 54 minutes. This level of service is determined by the total time spent on the date of the encounter. |
86 | $164 | $489 |
| Spinal fusion of additional segment A surgical procedure to join an additional section of the spine to the existing fusion. This is performed as a separate or subsequent step to stabilize more of the spinal column. |
75 | $281 | $1,410 |
| 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. |
75 | $120 | $364 |
| New patient office visit, complex (60-74 min) | 67 | $206 | $697 |
| Partial removal of spine bone with nerve release A surgical procedure involving the partial removal of spinal bone to release pressure on the lower spinal cord or nerves, and/or the removal of a spinal disc. |
42 | $1,018 | $5,603 |
| Spine fusion with cage or mesh device insertion A surgical procedure to fuse spine bones by inserting a cage or mesh device into the disc space. |
39 | $220 | $1,029 |
| Partial removal of spine bone with nerve release, each additional segment This procedure involves the partial removal of spinal bone to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or nerves. It is billed for each additional spinal segment treated beyond the initial segment. |
33 | $152 | $739 |
| Additional spinal bone removal and nerve release This procedure involves the partial removal of spine bone to release the spinal cord or nerves, along with disc removal, for each additional spinal level treated. |
23 | $200 | $813 |
| Placement of stabilizing device to back of 1 spine bone in neck A procedure involving the placement of a stabilizing device on the back of a single vertebra in the neck. |
15 | $648 | $3,192 |
| Spinal stabilization device placement, 3-6 segments Surgical placement of a device to stabilize three to six vertebrae in the back. |
14 | $573 | $2,831 |
| Office visit for established patient An office visit for an existing patient that may not require the healthcare professional to be present. |
14 | $19 | $74 |
| Lower back spinal fusion with bone and disc removal A surgical procedure to fuse vertebrae in the lower back. It involves removing part of the spine bone and a disc to stabilize the area. |
13 | $1,609 | $7,872 |
| Initial hospital admission, high complexity Initial hospital inpatient or observation care for a new patient involving high-level medical decision making, with at least 75 minutes total time on the date of the encounter. |
12 | $157 | $704 |
| Fusion of spine in lower back | 11 | $1,359 | $6,521 |
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.
15.1% high complexity
0.0% medium
84.9% routine
Industry Payment Transparency
Open Payments through 2024 ↗$1,144,713
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $163,530/year across 7 years
Top 2% in CA for neurological surgery
A higher payment rank reflects disclosed industry relationships (consulting, research, speaking) common among subspecialists — not wrongdoing.
36
Companies
1,104
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
$667,355 (58.3%)
Financial / Ownership
Ownership or investment interests, royalties, and licensing fees
$469,690 (41.0%)
Meals & Travel
Food, beverages, travel, and lodging — typically low-value
$7,668 (0.7%)
Payment trend by year
Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
2024
$112,470
2023
$150,208
2022
$149,042
2021
$79,630
2020
$85,236
2019
$185,628
2018
$382,499
Payments by company (2024)
Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Globus Medical, Inc.
$55,169
Stryker Corporation
$23,180
Highridge Medical LLC
$16,650
Medtronic, Inc.
$15,211
ZIMVIE INC.
$1,200
Arthrex, Inc.
$493
Kuros Biosciences USA, Inc
$188
Alphatec Spine, Inc
$126
Amplify Surgical, Inc.
$121
Carlsmed, Inc.
$109
Heron Therapeutics, Inc.
$22
Top 3 companies account for 84.5% of 2024 payments
All-time payments by company (2018-2024) ›
NuVasive, Inc.
$603,318
Stryker Corporation
$222,618
Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.
$98,615
Globus Medical, Inc.
$57,525
ZIMVIE INC.
$37,723
Medical Device Business Services, Inc.
$23,143
Medtronic USA, Inc.
$19,525
Medtronic, Inc.
$16,702
Highridge Medical LLC
$16,650
SI-BONE, Inc.
$16,580
DePuy Synthes Products LLC
$11,568
DePuy Synthes Products, Inc.
$9,097
NuVasive Specialized Orthopedics, Inc.
$4,600
SI-BONE, INC.
$3,797
Arthrex, Inc.
$493
DePuy Synthes Sales Inc.
$366
Alphatec Spine, Inc
$269
Spineology Inc.
$262
MML US, Inc.
$226
Carlsmed, Inc.
$217
Kuros Biosciences USA, Inc
$188
Cerapedics, Inc.
$176
BIOTRONIK NRO, Inc.
$173
SeaSpine Orthopedics Corporation
$127
Evolution Surgical, Inc
$126
Prosidyan, Inc
$125
Pacira Pharmaceuticals Incorporated
$125
Amplify Surgical, Inc.
$121
Orthofix Medical, Inc.
$59
Providence Medical Technology, Inc.
$50
Integrity Implants Inc.
$35
Nevro Corp.
$34
Heron Therapeutics, Inc.
$22
KLS-Martin L.P.
$19
PARADIGM SPINE, LLC
$19
Centinel Spine, LLC
$18
Top 3 companies account for 80.8% of all-time payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
ACF · ACIS · ACP · ADHERUS AUTOSPRAY ET DURAL SEALANT · ADVANCED PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT · AERO · AERO-LL · AIRO · ALEUTIAN LATERAL SYSTEM · ALIF · ANCHOR C · ARIA · Anterior Disc Prep · AttraX · BACS · BASE · BIOTRONIK · CALIBER · CANYON RETRACTOR SYSTEMS · CAPRI · CASCADIA · CD HORIZON · CMF & Thoracic Product Portfolio · COALITION · COHERE · CONCORDE · CONDUIT · CORRIDOR · CREO 5.5 · Colonial / Colonial TPS · DIVERGENCE-L · DualX and Dual Portal · ES2 · ES2 SPINAL SYSTEM · ESCALATE · EVEREST · EVEREST SPINAL SYSTEM · EXPAREL · Excelsius3D Imaging System · ExcelsiusGPS Robotic Navigation System · FIBERGRAFT BG MORSELS · Fibergraft · Hedron IA · I-FACTOR PEPTIDE ENHANCED BONE GRAFT · IFUSE IMPLANT · LIF · LessRay · MAGNETOS · MAZOR X SYSTEM · MESA · MESA SPINAL SYSTEM · MIDAS REX · MOBI-C PLUG & FIT US · MONTEREY AL · MOUNTAINEER · MULTIPLE · MaXcess · MaXcess-C · Mariner · MazorX - Renaissance · Mobi-C · Modulus · N/A · NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT · NIAGARA LATERAL ACCESS SYSTEM · NONE · NSE - ELITE ATTACHMENTS · NVM5 · Nuvaline/NuvaMap O.R. · O-ARM-ST · OASYS · OPTIMESH EXPANDABLE INTERBODY FUSION SYSTEM · Omnia · OptiMesh Interbody Fusion System · Orbit-R Anterior Lumbar Disc · Osteocel · PCM · PILLAR PL and TL PEEK Spacer System · PrimaGen · Propel · Pulse · RELINE · RISE · Rampart Duo Interbody Fusion System · ReActiv8 · SERRATO · SKYLINE · SONOPET IQ · SPINEJACK · STALIF C · STEALTHSTATION S8 PLATFORM · SYMPHONY · Simplify Cervical Artificial Disc · Spine-None · T-PLIF · TLIF · TLX · TRITANIUM · Timberline · UNID_PASS · VIPER · Vital · Walter · XIA · XLIF · YUKON · ZYNRELEF · aprevo · coflex · i-FACTOR Putty · iFuse Implant · iGA
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 (58%) are consulting fees, which typically reflect recognized clinical expertise sought by manufacturers. Total industry engagement is in the top 2% for neurological surgery in CA.
Geographic Context
Neurological surgerists within 10 mi
144
Per 100K population
7.6
County median income
$159,674
Nearest hospital
STANFORD HEALTH CARE
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. Ryu is a clinical cardiology specialist, with above-average Medicare volume (top 11% in CA), with consulting-driven industry engagement in the top 2% of CA peers, with 19 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. Ryu experienced with office visit, established patient (20-29 min)?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Ryu performed 238 office visit, established patient (20-29 min) 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. Ryu receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Ryu received a total of $1,144,713 from 36 companies across 1,104 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. Ryu's costs compare to other neurological surgerists in Stanford?
Dr. Ryu's average Medicare payment per service is $239. 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. Ryu) 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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