Medicare Enrolled

Dr. Philip Garza, M.D.

Ophthalmology · Buford, GA
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology — Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
Consulting-driven
1995 MALL OF GEORGIA BLVD STE A, Buford, GA 30519
6783812020
In practice since 2016 (10 years)
NPI: 1548623168 verify on NPPES ↗
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. Garza 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. Garza

Dr. Philip Garza is an ophthalmology specialist in Buford, GA, with 10 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Garza performed 1,278 Medicare services across 972 unique beneficiaries.

Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Garza received a total of $9,126 from 22 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 122 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in ophthalmology. 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. Garza 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.

✓ 10 years in practice ▲ 1,278 Medicare services $9,126 industry payments

Medicare Practice Summary

Medicare Utilization ↗
1,278
Medicare services
Bottom 37% in GA for ophthalmology
Lower Medicare volume may reflect subspecialty focus, hospital-based work, or a higher share of non-Medicare patients.
972
Unique beneficiaries
$63
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · How to read this →
~128 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.
303 $64 $154
Visual field test, extended
A test that maps your complete field of vision to detect blind spots or peripheral vision loss. Extended testing provides a more detailed assessment than a standard visual field exam.
190 $43 $165
Optic nerve imaging (OCT scan)
Imaging of the optic nerve.
180 $27 $95
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.
162 $88 $228
Ultrasound scan of cornea to determine thickness
An ultrasound procedure used to measure the thickness of the cornea.
89 $7 $50
Corneal topography and eye depth measurement
This procedure measures the curvature and depth of the cornea, the clear front surface of the eye.
81 $21 $216
Eye drainage system examination
An examination of the internal drainage system of the eye to assess how fluid flows and drains from the eye.
79 $19 $95
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.
54 $77 $225
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.
54 $114 $349
Cataract surgery with lens implant
Surgical removal of the clouded natural lens of the eye and replacement with an artificial prosthetic lens to restore vision.
38 $364 $1,800
Retinal imaging (OCT scan)
This procedure involves imaging the retina to visualize its structure. It is used to examine the back of the eye.
26 $32 $95
Laser eye fluid drainage tract creation
A laser procedure used to create drainage tracts in the iris to help fluid flow out of the eye.
22 $233 $850
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.
3.0% high complexity
23.1% medium
73.9% routine

Industry Payment Transparency

Open Payments through 2024 ↗
$9,126
Total received (2019-2024)
Avg $1,825/year across 5 years
Top 15% in GA for ophthalmology
A higher payment rank reflects disclosed industry relationships (consulting, research, speaking) common among subspecialists — not wrongdoing.
22
Companies
122
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
$5,201 (57.0%)
Meals & Travel
Food, beverages, travel, and lodging — typically low-value
$3,925 (43.0%)

Payment trend by year

Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

2024
$6,187
2023
$1,167
2022
$1,141
2021
$561
2019
$69

Payments by company (2024)

Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Alcon Vision LLC
$5,201
ABBVIE INC.
$269
NEW WORLD MEDICAL,INC.
$252
Harrow Eye, LLC
$121
Oyster Point Pharma, Inc.
$109
Sight Sciences, Inc.
$84
Glaukos Corporation
$64
Johnson & Johnson Surgical Vision, Inc.
$44
RxSight Inc
$23
Amgen Inc.
$22
Top 3 companies account for 92.5% of 2024 payments
All-time payments by company (2019-2024) ›
Alcon Vision LLC
$6,044
ABBVIE INC.
$687
Glaukos Corporation
$439
Oyster Point Pharma, Inc.
$337
Sight Sciences, Inc.
$324
NEW WORLD MEDICAL,INC.
$252
Johnson & Johnson Surgical Vision, Inc.
$171
GLAUKOS CORPORATION
$160
Carl Zeiss Meditec USA, Inc.
$128
Harrow Eye, LLC
$121
CooperVision Inc.
$97
Bausch & Lomb Americas Inc.
$92
Mallinckrodt Hospital Products Inc.
$56
Aerie Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$40
Allergan, Inc.
$36
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
$24
RxSight Inc
$23
Amgen Inc.
$22
Ivantis, Inc
$21
BioTissue Holdings, Inc.
$21
Thea Pharma Inc.
$20
Iridex Corporation
$11
Top 3 companies account for 78.6% of all-time payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
ACTHAR · ARGOS · AcrySof · CLARUS · Catalyst System · Centurion · Clareon · DURYSTA · HYDRUS Microstent · Hydrus Microstent · IACCESS · ISTENT · ISTENT INJECT W · IYUZEH · KXL SYSTEM · Kahook Dual Blade · LUMIGAN · MiSight Contact Lens · OMNI SURGICAL SYSTEM · OMNI(R) SURGICAL SYSTEM (US) · PROKERA · RESTASIS MULTIDOSE · RXSIGHT CONTACT LENS · Rhopressa · Rocklatan · Simbrinza · TEPEZZA · TYRVAYA · Tecnis IOL · VERITAS Vision System · VEVYE · VUITY · VYZULTA · XIIDRA · enVista MX60 IOL · iDose · iDose TR · iStent Trabecular Micro-Bypass System Model iS3 · iStent inject W · rhopressa · rocklatan
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 (57%) are consulting fees, which typically reflect recognized clinical expertise sought by manufacturers.

Looking for an ophthalmology specialist in Buford?
Compare ophthalmologists in the Buford area by procedure volume, costs, and industry payment transparency.
Browse ophthalmologists nearby

Geographic Context

Ophthalmologists within 10 mi
70
Per 100K population
7.2
County median income
$84,823
Nearest hospital
SUMMITRIDGE CENTER- PSYCHIATRY & ADDICTIVE MED
9.9 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. Garza is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, with consulting-driven industry engagement in the top 15% of GA peers.

This summary is auto-generated from federal data, describing data availability and patterns. Read our methodology →

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Dr. Garza experienced with office visit, established patient (20-29 min)?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Garza performed 303 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. Garza receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Garza received a total of $9,126 from 22 companies across 122 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. Garza's costs compare to other ophthalmologists in Buford?
Dr. Garza's average Medicare payment per service is $63. 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. Garza) 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 →
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.

Provider corrections: Provider portal · Privacy questions: Privacy Policy · Terms: Terms of Use · Methodology: Methodology

Data Disclaimer — Data sourced from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES), Open Payments program, Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data, and Provider Enrollment & Certification data (PECOS). Published under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). This website is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or authorized by CMS, HHS, or the U.S. Government. Data may contain errors as reported to CMS by providers and reporting entities. Payments from industry are legal and do not indicate wrongdoing. Medicare data reflects only patients aged 65+ or those with qualifying disabilities. For corrections, contact CMS directly. This information does not constitute medical advice and should not be used as the sole basis for choosing a healthcare provider. Procedure descriptions use plain language and do not reference CPT® codes, which are copyrighted by the American Medical Association. Full methodology → · Report a data error → · Privacy policy →