Dr. John Atwater, M.D.
What this data tells you about Dr. Atwater
Dr. John Atwater is an orthopaedic surgery of the spine physician in Vero Beach, FL, with 19 years in practice. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Atwater performed 1,499 Medicare services across 931 unique beneficiaries.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Atwater received a total of $482,620 from 32 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 155 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in orthopaedic surgery of the spine physician. The majority of payments are classified as financial or ownership interests (royalties, licensing fees, or investment interests). Patients may wish to discuss these relationships with their provider.
The Data Coverage level for Dr. Atwater is Very High — reflecting how much public federal data is available about this provider. This is not a quality rating. Patients are encouraged to use this data as one of several factors when choosing a healthcare provider.
Medicare Practice Summary
Medicare Utilization ↗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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Betamethasone steroid injection | 303 | $5 | $69 |
| Office visit, established patient (30-39 min) | 249 | $97 | $1,138 |
| Contrast dye for imaging (iodine-based) | 199 | $0 | $30 |
| Office visit, established patient (20-29 min) | 165 | $72 | $778 |
| Injection of anesthetic and/or steroid drug into sacral spine nerve root using imaging guidance, single level | 94 | $224 | $2,383 |
| New patient office visit (45-59 min) | 65 | $122 | $1,738 |
| X-ray of lower and sacral spine, minimum of 4 views | 55 | $42 | $532 |
| X-ray lower and sacral spine, minimum of 6 views | 55 | $49 | $605 |
| Injection of anesthetic and/or steroid drug into sacral spine nerve root using imaging guidance, each additional level | 45 | $100 | $1,036 |
| Mri scan of lower spinal canal without contrast | 42 | $161 | $2,294 |
| Injection of anesthetic or steroid into joint between lower spine and hip bone using imaging guidance | 33 | $140 | $1,691 |
| Physician or allowed practitioner certification for medicare-covered home health services under a home health plan of care (patient not present), including contacts with home health agency and review of reports of patient status required by physicians and | 29 | $41 | $558 |
| Joint injection, major joint | 28 | $51 | $654 |
| Injection of trigger points, 1-2 muscles | 27 | $43 | $590 |
| X-ray lower and sacral spine, 2-3 views bending views | 25 | $32 | $446 |
| Injection of upper or middle spine facet joint using imaging guidance, single level | 24 | $188 | $2,003 |
| X-ray of upper spine, 6 or more views | 18 | $49 | $623 |
| Insertion of cage or mesh device to spine bone and disc space during spine fusion | 15 | $237 | $3,095 |
| Injection of upper or middle spine facet joint using imaging guidance, second level | 14 | $90 | $1,001 |
| Injection of lower or sacral spine facet joint using imaging guidance, single level | 14 | $188 | $1,821 |
Industry Payment Transparency
Open Payments through 2024 ↗Payment profile
Industry payments classified by relationship type. Not all payments are equal — research and consulting reflect different relationships than speaking programs or meals.
Payment trend by year
Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
Payments by company (2024)
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
Payments are distributed across multiple categories with no single dominant type.
Geographic Context
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 measures how much public data is available about a provider — not how good they are. How we calculate this →
Summary
Dr. Atwater is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, and high industry engagement (mixed engagement, top 11%), with 19 years of practice experience.
This summary is auto-generated from federal data. It describes data availability and patterns — not clinical quality. Read our methodology →
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Dr. Atwater experienced with betamethasone steroid injection?
Does Dr. Atwater receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
How do Dr. Atwater's costs compare to other orthopaedic surgery of the spine physicians in Vero Beach?
What does Data Coverage mean?
Is this data up to date?
Explore related providers
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. The Transparency Score measures 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.
Provider corrections: Provider portal · Privacy questions: Privacy Policy · Terms: Terms of Use · Methodology: Methodology