Medicare Enrolled

Dr. Louis Cristol, M.D.

Nuclear Cardiology Physician · Burleson, TX
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology— Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
Low-engagement
209 OLD HIGHWAY 1187, Burleson, TX 76028
8226867006
In practice since 2005 (20 years)
NPI: 1699750471 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. Cristol 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. Cristol? Request a correction or review of any data shown here. Provider portal →

What this data tells you about Dr. Cristol

Dr. Louis Cristol is a nuclear cardiology physician in Burleson, TX, with 20 years in practice. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Cristol performed 2,876 Medicare services across 1,942 unique beneficiaries.

Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Cristol received a total of $5,883 from 33 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 344 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in nuclear cardiology physician. Most payments are for meals and travel — low-value interactions common across virtually all practicing physicians. Patients may wish to discuss these relationships with their provider.

The Data Coverage level for Dr. Cristol 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.

✓ 20 years in practice▲ 2,876 Medicare services$ $5,883 industry payments

Medicare Practice Summary

Medicare Utilization ↗
2,876
Medicare services
Bottom 44% in TX for nuclear cardiology physician
1,942
Unique beneficiaries
$78
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · Not a quality rating · How to read this →
~144 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
Office visit, established patient (30-39 min)796$92$231
Electrocardiogram (EKG), 12-lead349$11$42
Hospital follow-up visit, moderate complexity277$61$155
Office visit, established patient (20-29 min)174$62$156
Regadenoson injection (Lexiscan) for heart stress test136$46$120
Prothrombin time test (blood clotting)124$4$13
Ultrasound of both sides of head and neck blood flow106$111$456
Echocardiogram, transthoracic102$144$471
Ultrasound of leg arteries or artery grafts94$150$606
Hospital follow-up visit, high complexity91$87$223
Initial hospital admission, high complexity84$131$434
Ultrasound study of arm and leg arteries64$47$231
Office visit, established patient, complex (40-54 min)52$130$310
Exercise or drug-induced heart stress test with electrocardiogram (ecg) with supervision and review by physician43$51$196
Initial hospital admission, moderate complexity42$101$295
Ultrasound study of arm or leg veins with compression and maneuvers39$138$565
Technetium tc-99m tetrofosmin, diagnostic, per study dose33$170$224
Nuclear medicine studies of heart muscle at rest and with stress and spect31$347$1,111
Hospital follow-up visit, low complexity27$39$85
Use of a drug to induce depression of consciousness by physician performing a procedure (5 years or older), initial 15 minutes26$9$150
New patient office visit (45-59 min)26$110$355
Sleep study including heart rate, breathing, and sleep time24$108$903
Office or other outpatient visit for the evaluation and management of established patient that may not require presence of healthcare professional20$14$44
Exercise or drug-induced heart stress test with electrocardiogram (ecg) with review by physician17$10$34
Ultrasound of heart with probe in esophagus, with report16$83$237
Ultrasound of heart with color-depicted blood flow, rate and valve function16$2$30
Heart rhythm recording, analysis, report, review, and interpretation of continous external ekg over more than 48 hours up to 7 days15$207$750
Ultrasound of heart blood flow, valves and chambers14$14$42
New patient office visit (30-44 min)14$87$233
Complete ultrasound of aorta, vena cava, groin vessels or bypass grafts13$125$474
New patient office visit, complex (60-74 min)11$176$442
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.
5.0% high complexity
19.0% medium
76.0% routine

Industry Payment Transparency

Open Payments through 2024 ↗
$5,883
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $840/year across 7 years
Bottom 47% in TX for nuclear cardiology physician
33
Companies
344
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.

Meals & Travel
Food, beverages, travel, and lodging — typically low-value
$5,504 (93.6%)
Speaking / Promotional
Speaker programs, honoraria, and industry-sponsored educational events
$379 (6.4%)

Payment trend by year

Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

2024
$994
2023
$766
2022
$869
2021
$964
2020
$524
2019
$966
2018
$802

Payments by company (2024)

Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
$927
PFIZER INC.
$642
Amgen Inc.
$611
Esperion Therapeutics, Inc.
$452
Abbott Laboratories
$336
Amarin Pharma Inc.
$318
SANOFI-AVENTIS U.S. LLC
$298
AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP
$262
Astellas Pharma US Inc
$253
ABIOMED
$217
Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC
$206
Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc
$161
Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc.
$158
Chiesi USA, Inc.
$126
Gilead Sciences, Inc.
$112
Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals, Ltd.
$103
E.R. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C.
$102
Boston Scientific Corporation
$101
Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc.
$77
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$71
BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORPORATION
$68
Althera Pharmaceuticals LLC
$34
SCPHARMACEUTICALS INC.
$33
Merck Sharp & Dohme Corporation
$33
Daiichi Sankyo Inc.
$29
Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals International, plc
$25
Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc.
$24
BIOTRONIK INC.
$20
Allergan Inc.
$19
Philips North America LLC
$17
AngioDynamics, Inc.
$17
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$16
Biosense Webster, Inc.
$16
Top 3 companies account for 37.0% of total payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
(CK4) MCOT · AURYON LASER SYSTEM 100-120 VAC · Accent Pacemaker · Arcalyst · Asahi Fielder coronary guide wire · Assurity Pacemaker · BYSTOLIC · CAMZYOS · CHANTIX · CONFIRM RX · CartoSound · Corlanor · DIAMONDBACK PERIPHERAL · ELIQUIS · ELUVIA · EMBLEM · ENTRESTO · FARXIGA · FINELINE · FUROSCIX · INJECTAFER · Impella · JARDIANCE · KENGREAL · LEQVIO · LEXISCAN · LOKELMA · Letairis · Livalo · MITRACLIP · MULTAQ · Mitra Clip system · NEXLETOL · NEXLIZET · ONPATTRO · OPSUMIT · PRADAXA · PRALUENT · PRALUENT ALIROCUMAB INJECTION · Quadra Assura CRT Defibrillator · Repatha · Roszet · SPECTRA WAVEWRITER · THORATEC HEARTMATE 3 LVAS IMPLANT KIT · VERQUVO · VYNDAQEL · Vascepa · WATCHMAN · WATCHMAN Access System · WATCHMAN FLX · XARELTO · Xience Alpine cornary stent system
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 →

Most payments (94%) are for meals and travel — low-value interactions that are common across virtually all practicing physicians.

Equivalent to $205 per 100 Medicare services performed
Looking for a nuclear cardiology physician in Burleson?
Compare nuclear cardiology physicians in the Burleson area by procedure volume, costs, and industry payment transparency.
Browse nuclear cardiology physicians nearby

Geographic Context

Nuclear Cardiology Physicians within 10 mi
5
Per 100K population
2.6
County median income
$81,826
Nearest hospital
BAYLOR SCOTT AND WHITE EMERGENCY 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. Cristol is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, and low-engagement industry engagement, with 20 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. Cristol experienced with office visit, established patient (30-39 min)?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Cristol performed 796 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. Cristol receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Cristol received a total of $5,883 from 33 companies across 344 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. Cristol's costs compare to other nuclear cardiology physicians in Burleson?
Dr. Cristol's average Medicare payment per service is $78. 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. Cristol) 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 →