Medicare Enrolled
Dr. Richard Epter, M.D.,DABPM,FIPP
Optician · Augusta, GA
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology
— Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
Speaking/Promotional
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. Epter 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 →
Are you Dr. Epter?
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What this data tells you about Dr. Epter
Dr. Richard Epter is an optician specialist in Augusta, GA, with 20 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Epter performed 1,423 Medicare services across 994 unique beneficiaries.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Epter received a total of $26,895 from 35 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 248 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in optician. The majority of payments are for speaking programs and promotional activities, reflecting participation in industry-sponsored events. Patients may wish to discuss these relationships with their provider.
The Data Coverage level for Dr. Epter 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 35% volume in GA
$26,895 industry payments
Medicare Practice Summary
Medicare Utilization ↗1,423
Medicare services
Top 35% in GA for optician
994
Unique beneficiaries
$73
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · How to read this →
~71 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 (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. |
180 | $85 | $187 |
| 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. |
157 | $61 | $125 |
| Injection of anesthetic or steroid into sacroiliac joint with imaging guidance This procedure involves injecting an anesthetic or steroid medication into the joint connecting the lower spine and hip bone. Imaging guidance is used to ensure accurate placement of the injection. |
135 | $75 | $2,608 |
| 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. |
118 | $100 | $270 |
| Spine facet joint injection with imaging guidance, single level An injection is administered into a single facet joint of the lower or sacral spine while using imaging guidance to ensure accurate placement. |
88 | $95 | $1,184 |
| Office visit for established patient An office visit for an existing patient that may not require the healthcare professional to be present. |
86 | $14 | $60 |
| Facet joint injection, second level, with imaging guidance An injection into a lower or sacral spine facet joint using imaging guidance for the second level treated. |
83 | $54 | $846 |
| Office visit, established patient (10-19 min) An office visit for an existing patient lasting 10 to 19 minutes. The visit involves medical evaluation and management of the patient's condition. |
75 | $34 | $78 |
| Sacral spine nerve root injection with imaging guidance An injection of anesthetic and/or steroid medication into a sacral spine nerve root. The procedure uses imaging guidance to ensure accurate placement. |
73 | $108 | $2,196 |
| Facet joint nerve destruction, additional joint This procedure uses imaging guidance to destroy nerves in an additional lower or sacral spinal facet joint. |
48 | $63 | $680 |
| Ultrasound-guided large joint aspiration or injection This procedure uses ultrasound imaging to guide the removal of fluid from or the injection of medication into a large joint. |
46 | $75 | $416 |
| Facet joint nerve destruction, single joint A procedure to destroy nerves in a single lower or sacral spinal facet joint using imaging guidance to target pain signals. |
42 | $200 | $1,445 |
| Joint injection, major joint Removal of fluid from a large joint and/or injection of medication into the joint space. |
37 | $35 | $389 |
| Fluoroscopic guidance for needle placement Use of real-time X-ray imaging to guide the precise placement of a needle during a medical procedure. |
36 | $20 | $240 |
| Spine facet joint injection with imaging guidance, single level An injection is administered into a single facet joint of the upper or middle spine while using imaging guidance to ensure accurate placement. |
34 | $98 | $2,303 |
| Facet joint injection, second level, with imaging An injection into a second spinal facet joint in the upper or middle spine, guided by imaging to ensure accurate placement. |
34 | $57 | $1,535 |
| Ultrasound guidance for needle placement Use of ultrasound imaging to guide the precise placement of a needle during a medical procedure. |
33 | $40 | $594 |
| Spinal injection with imaging guidance A procedure where medication is injected into the middle or upper part of the spinal canal. Imaging technology is used to guide the needle to the correct location. |
29 | $81 | $780 |
| Injection into lower spine canal with imaging guidance A procedure where a substance is injected into the lower part of the spinal canal. The injection is performed using imaging guidance to ensure accurate placement. |
24 | $73 | $690 |
| Femoral nerve injection with anesthetic and/or steroid An injection of an anesthetic agent and/or steroid into the femoral nerve in the thigh. This procedure delivers medication directly to the nerve. |
21 | $84 | $600 |
| Facet joint nerve destruction, additional joint This procedure uses imaging guidance to destroy nerves in an additional upper or middle spinal facet joint. |
18 | $58 | $547 |
| Facet joint nerve destruction, single joint This procedure uses imaging guidance to destroy the nerves supplying a single upper or middle spinal facet joint. It is performed to interrupt pain signals from that specific joint. |
14 | $164 | $1,166 |
| 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. |
12 | $47 | $180 |
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 ↗$26,895
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $3,842/year across 7 years
Top 6% in GA for optician
A higher payment rank reflects disclosed industry relationships (consulting, research, speaking) common among subspecialists — not wrongdoing.
35
Companies
248
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.
Speaking / Promotional
Speaker programs, honoraria, and industry-sponsored educational events
$18,316 (68.1%)
Meals & Travel
Food, beverages, travel, and lodging — typically low-value
$8,579 (31.9%)
Payment trend by year
Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
2024
$18,749
2023
$1,603
2022
$2,742
2021
$582
2020
$744
2019
$1,048
2018
$1,426
Payments by company (2024)
Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Nevro Corp.
$10,897
PAINTEQ LLC
$7,419
MML US, Inc.
$129
Spinal Simplicity, LLC
$127
Abbott Laboratories
$86
Saluda Medical Americas, Inc.
$34
Azurity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$30
Boston Scientific Corporation
$21
Kerecis Limited
$7
Top 3 companies account for 98.4% of 2024 payments
All-time payments by company (2018-2024) ›
Nevro Corp.
$12,028
PAINTEQ LLC
$9,211
Boston Scientific Corporation
$1,731
BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORPORATION
$809
Spinal Elements, Inc.
$718
Abbott Laboratories
$484
Vertos Medical, Inc.
$427
Stimwave Technologies Incorporated
$209
MML US, Inc.
$129
Spinal Simplicity, LLC
$127
Daiichi Sankyo Inc.
$125
ACACIA PHARMA INC
$110
Nalu Medical, Inc.
$94
Scilex Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$88
Curonix LLC
$86
SCILEX PHARMACEUTICALS INC.
$73
Assertio Therapeutics, Inc.
$60
Flexion Therapeutics, Inc.
$52
US WorldMeds, LLC
$38
Epimed International, Inc
$34
Saluda Medical Americas, Inc.
$34
Azurity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$30
PFIZER INC.
$26
IBSA Pharma Inc.
$21
Averitas Pharma Inc.
$17
Arbor Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$17
AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP
$16
ARBOR PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
$16
ASSERTIO THERAPEUTICS, Inc.
$14
Medtronic USA, Inc.
$14
FIDIA PHARMA USA INC.
$13
Horizon Pharma plc
$13
Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc.
$12
Egalet US Inc
$11
Kerecis Limited
$7
Top 3 companies account for 85.4% of all-time payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
ARYMO ER · BYFAVO · Cambia · Catheters and Needles · DUEXIS · ETERNA · Evoke · G4 RF Generator · GENERAL THERAPIES · GENERAL PAIN MANAGEMENT · GENERAL - · GENERAL - PAIN MANAGEMENT · GENERAL PAIN MANAGEMENT · General - Pain Management · Gralise · HA MINUTEMAN G3-R · HORIZANT · Horizant · Hymovis · INTELLIS · Kerecis Omega3 SurgiClose · LYRICA · Licart · Lucemyra/Lofexidine · MOVANTIK · Morphabond ER · NA · Nalu Neurostimulation System · Omnia · PAINTEQ · PNS FREEDOM-4A PERMANENT NEUROSTIMULATOR RECEIVER KIT CHANNEL A · PROCLAIM · Proclaim Family of SCS IPGs · Proclaim IPG · QUTENZA · ReActiv8 · SPECTRA WAVEWRITER · SPECTRA WAVEWRITER REFURBISHED · SUPERION · Senza · Senza Spinal Cord Stimulation System · StimQ Peripheral Nerve StimulatorSystem · Superion · Vyrsa V1 · WAVEWRITER ALPHA · WaveWriter Alpha Prime 16 · XTAMPZA · ZTLido · Zilretta · mild Device Kit
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 (68%) are for speaking programs and promotional activities, which reflect participation in industry-sponsored educational or marketing events. This is common in optician and does not inherently indicate bias, but patients may wish to be aware. Total industry engagement is in the top 6% for optician in GA.
Geographic Context
Opticians within 10 mi
69
Per 100K population
33.5
County median income
$53,197
Nearest hospital
DOCTORS 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. Epter is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, with speaking/promotional industry engagement in the top 6% of GA 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. Epter experienced with office visit, established patient (30-39 min)?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Epter performed 180 office visit, established patient (30-39 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. Epter receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Epter received a total of $26,895 from 35 companies across 248 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. Epter's costs compare to other opticians in Augusta?
Dr. Epter's average Medicare payment per service is $73. 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. Epter) 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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