Medicare Enrolled

Dr. Michael Blair, M.D.

Ophthalmology · Arlington, TX
Practice pattern: Cardiac Surgery— Surgically focused practice
Consulting-driven
801 W RANDOL MILL RD STE 201, Arlington, TX 76012
8172776433
In practice since 2007 (19 years)
NPI: 1104949841 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. Blair 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. Blair? Request a correction or review of any data shown here. Provider portal →

What this data tells you about Dr. Blair

Dr. Michael Blair is an ophthalmology in Arlington, TX, with 19 years in practice. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Blair performed 1,229 Medicare services across 840 unique beneficiaries.

Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Blair received a total of $41,905 from 31 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 262 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. Blair 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.

✓ 19 years in practice▲ 1,229 Medicare services$ $41,905 industry payments

Medicare Practice Summary

Medicare Utilization ↗
1,229
Medicare services
Bottom 37% in TX for ophthalmology
Lower Medicare volume may reflect subspecialty focus, hospital-based work, or a higher share of non-Medicare patients.
840
Unique beneficiaries
$176
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · Not a quality rating · How to read this →
~65 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.

ProcedureVolumeAvg. paidAvg. submitted
Cataract surgery with lens implant405$386$2,250
Corneal topography and eye depth measurement405$29$141
New patient office visit (45-59 min)154$109$215
Office visit, established patient (30-39 min)99$85$150
Removal of recurring cataract in lens capsule using a laser77$246$651
Comprehensive eye exam, established patient25$88$165
Retinal imaging (OCT scan)24$29$125
Eye exam, established patient, focused23$62$105
Optic nerve imaging (OCT scan)17$26$125
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.
33.0% high complexity
3.3% medium
63.7% routine

Industry Payment Transparency

Open Payments through 2024 ↗
$41,905
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $5,986/year across 7 years
Top 6% in TX for ophthalmology
31
Companies
262
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
$33,586 (80.1%)
Speaking / Promotional
Speaker programs, honoraria, and industry-sponsored educational events
$6,329 (15.1%)
Meals & Travel
Food, beverages, travel, and lodging — typically low-value
$1,990 (4.7%)

Payment trend by year

Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

2024
$5,879
2023
$8,631
2022
$4,600
2021
$7,791
2020
$1,757
2019
$6,254
2018
$6,992

Payments by company (2024)

Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Alcon Vision LLC
$20,475
Alcon Research LLC
$12,892
Alcon Laboratories Inc
$6,329
Alcon Research Ltd
$525
Sight Sciences, Inc.
$200
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
$182
ABBVIE INC.
$164
AbbVie Inc.
$130
BioTissue Holdings, Inc.
$107
Johnson & Johnson Surgical Vision, Inc.
$107
Allergan, Inc.
$101
Shire North American Group Inc
$68
Bausch & Lomb Americas Inc.
$65
Allergan Inc.
$64
Bausch & Lomb, a division of Bausch Health US, LLC
$60
TISSUETECH, INC.
$58
Ocular Therapeutix, Inc.
$58
Glaukos Corporation
$53
Eyevance Pharmaceuticals LLC
$35
E.R. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C.
$26
Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$21
OptiNose US, Inc.
$20
Omeros Corporation
$20
Oyster Point Pharma, Inc.
$19
Kala Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$19
BIOTISSUE HOLDINGS INC.
$19
Iridex Corporation
$18
EyePoint Pharmaceuticals US, Inc.
$18
Ivantis, Inc
$17
OPTOS, INC.
$17
Aerie Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$17
Top 3 companies account for 94.7% of total payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
ACTIVEFOCUS · ARGOS · AcrySof · AcrySof IQ PanOptix · AcrySof IQ PanOptix UV IOL · AcrySof IQ VIVITY IOL · CAMZYOS · COMPLERA · Centurion · Clareon · CyPass · DEXTENZA · DEXYCU · DURYSTA · Flarex · Hydrus · ILUX · INVELTYS · KXL System · LOTEMAX SM · LUMIGAN · LenSx · Luxor · MIEBO · Monaco · OMNI · OMNI(R) SURGICAL SYSTEM (US) · ORA · ORA System VerifEye · Omidria · PROKERA · PROLENSA · PanOptix · ReSTOR · Rocklatan · TRAVATAN Z · TYRVAYA · Tecnis IOL · Tecnis Simplicity · Tecnis Symfony IOL · VUITY · VYZULTA · Verion · Wavelight · Wavelight Refractive Suite · XDEMVY · XIIDRA · Xhance · iStent Trabecular Micro-Bypass System Model iS3 · iStent inject Trabecular Micro-Bypass Stent System · rhopressa
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 (80%) are consulting fees, which typically reflect recognized clinical expertise sought by manufacturers. Total industry engagement is in the top 6% for ophthalmology in TX.

Equivalent to $3,410 per 100 Medicare services performed
Looking for a ophthalmology in Arlington?
Compare ophthalmologys in the Arlington area by procedure volume, costs, and industry payment transparency.
Browse ophthalmologys nearby

Geographic Context

Ophthalmologys within 10 mi
277
Per 100K population
13.0
County median income
$81,905
Nearest hospital
TEXAS HEALTH ARLINGTON MEMORIAL HOSPITAL
0.0 mi

Data Sources

Provider Registry NPPESWeekly updates
Medicare Enrollment PECOSMonthly updates
Practice Data Medicare Util.Annual (CY lag)
Industry Payments Open PaymentsCY 2024
Disciplinary History— Not publicN/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. Blair is a cardiac surgery specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, and high industry engagement (consulting-driven, top 6%), 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. Blair experienced with cataract surgery with lens implant?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Blair performed 405 cataract surgery with lens implant 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. Blair receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Blair received a total of $41,905 from 31 companies across 262 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. Blair's costs compare to other ophthalmologys in Arlington?
Dr. Blair's average Medicare payment per service is $176. 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. Blair) 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. 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

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 →