Medicare Enrolled
Dr. Galen Howard, M.D.
Urology Physician · Denton, TX
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology
— Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
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. Howard 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. Howard
Dr. Galen Howard is an urology physician in Denton, TX, with 19 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Howard performed 4,750 Medicare services in 2023. These records do not provide a deduplicated patient total.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Howard received a total of $6,765 from 50 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 322 payment records. A record can group multiple payments. These transfers are publicly reported through CMS Open Payments. Disclosure alone does not establish their effect on care. A reliable breakdown by payment category is not available in this snapshot. Patients may wish to discuss these relationships with their provider.
The Data Coverage level for Dr. Howard 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.
✓ 19 years of NPI registration
▲ Top 25% volume in TX
$6,765 industry payments
Medicare Practice Summary — 2023
Medicare Utilization ↗4,750
Medicare services
Top 25% in TX for urology physician
Not available
Unique patients (not deduplicated)
$57
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · How to read this →
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Automated urinalysis An automated laboratory test performed on a urine sample to analyze its chemical and physical properties. The procedure uses machinery to detect various substances and cells within the urine. |
948 | $2 | $5 |
| Leuprolide injectable, camcevi, 1 mg | 842 | $68 | $178 |
| 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. |
612 | $63 | $183 |
| 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. |
487 | $92 | $259 |
| Blood draw (venipuncture) Insertion of a needle into a vein to collect a blood sample. |
269 | $8 | $17 |
| PSA test (prostate cancer screening) | 241 | $18 | $37 |
| 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. |
234 | $119 | $336 |
| Cystourethroscopy A diagnostic exam of the bladder and urethra using an endoscope to visually inspect the urinary tract. |
215 | $176 | $495 |
| Bladder ultrasound after voiding An ultrasound scan performed after urination to measure the amount of urine remaining in the bladder. |
121 | $8 | $22 |
| Urine culture, bacterial identification A laboratory test that grows and identifies bacteria from a urine sample to detect infections. |
117 | $8 | $16 |
| Urine culture, bacterial colony count A laboratory test that measures the number of bacteria growing in a urine sample to help identify infections. |
97 | $8 | $16 |
| Bacterial culture, aerobic A laboratory test that grows and identifies bacteria capable of surviving in oxygen. The results help determine the presence of specific aerobic microorganisms. |
70 | $8 | $16 |
| Antibiotic sensitivity test A laboratory test that determines which antibiotics, antifungals, or antivirals are effective against a specific microorganism using microdilution or agar dilution methods. |
70 | $8 | $17 |
| Hospital follow-up visit, moderate complexity Follow-up hospital visit for an existing patient involving moderate medical decision making. The visit requires at least 35 minutes of time spent on the date of service. |
55 | $62 | $159 |
| Initial hospital admission, moderate complexity Initial hospital inpatient or observation care for a new patient involving moderate-level medical decision making, with at least 55 minutes total time on the date of the encounter. |
47 | $102 | $262 |
| Electronic assessment of bladder emptying A test that uses electronic monitoring to evaluate how well the bladder empties urine. |
44 | $10 | $28 |
| Prostate gland biopsy A procedure to remove small samples of tissue from the prostate gland for laboratory examination. |
39 | $181 | $491 |
| Transrectal ultrasound of the pelvis An ultrasound imaging procedure where a probe is inserted into the rectum to visualize pelvic structures. |
39 | $102 | $282 |
| Bladder irrigation and/or instillation This procedure involves flushing the bladder with fluid to clear it or introducing medication directly into the bladder. |
31 | $55 | $156 |
| Shock wave crushing of kidney stones A procedure that uses shock waves to break kidney stones into smaller pieces so they can pass more easily from the body. |
30 | $409 | $1,448 |
| Total testosterone level test A blood test that measures the total amount of testosterone in your body. This hormone is important for various bodily functions in both men and women. |
30 | $25 | $52 |
| 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. |
30 | $77 | $226 |
| Transurethral prostate removal with electrocautery This procedure involves removing the prostate gland through the urethra using an endoscope and an electrocautery knife to control bleeding. |
25 | $549 | $1,447 |
| Free PSA test A blood test that measures the amount of unbound prostate-specific antigen in the blood. |
18 | $18 | $37 |
| Drug injection, under skin or into muscle A procedure involving the administration of a medication or substance via injection into the subcutaneous tissue or muscle. |
14 | $11 | $29 |
| Injection, garamycin, gentamicin, up to 80 mg | 13 | $2 | $6 |
| Subcutaneous or intramuscular chemotherapy injection This procedure involves administering anti-cancer hormonal medication through an injection into the tissue under the skin or into a muscle. |
12 | $26 | $70 |
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. These counts do not measure clinical quality or years of experience.
Industry Payment Transparency
Open Payments through 2024 ↗$6,765
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $966/year across 7 years
Top 29% in TX for urology physician
A higher payment rank reflects disclosed industry relationships (consulting, research, speaking) common among subspecialists — not wrongdoing.
50
Companies
322
Payment records
Payments are publicly reported; disclosure does not establish legality · Not evidence of wrongdoing · How to interpret →
Payment categories are unavailable while the source breakdown is being rebuilt. Company and year totals do not identify how much belongs to each category.
Payment trend by year
Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
2024
$1,651
2023
$1,871
2022
$1,515
2021
$575
2020
$298
2019
$521
2018
$334
Payments by company (2024)
Boston Scientific Corporation
$239
PROCEPT BioRobotics Corporation
$214
Dendreon Pharmaceuticals LLC
$153
Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$135
PFIZER INC.
$104
Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc.
$89
UROGEN PHARMA, INC.
$83
Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$80
Janssen Biotech, Inc.
$63
ACCORD HEALTHCARE, INC.
$58
Astellas Pharma US Inc
$46
COLOPLAST CORP
$44
Verity Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$43
Axonics, Inc.
$43
Tempus AI, Inc
$30
Pacira Pharmaceuticals Incorporated
$27
ABBVIE INC.
$27
Innovation Technologies Inc
$24
CIVCO Medical Instruments
$23
Endo USA, Inc.
$21
Olympus America Inc.
$21
Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC
$19
Medtronic, Inc.
$19
Cook Medical LLC
$17
Tolmar, Inc.
$15
Amgen Inc.
$14
Top 3 companies account for 36.7% of 2024 payments
All-time payments by company (2018-2024) ›
Astellas Pharma US Inc
$1,012
Boston Scientific Corporation
$592
Axonics, Inc.
$494
PFIZER INC.
$438
Accord Healthcare, Inc.
$350
Janssen Biotech, Inc.
$337
Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$292
ACCORD HEALTHCARE, INC.
$274
Dendreon Pharmaceuticals LLC
$241
Myovant Sciences Inc.
$232
180 Medical, Inc.
$224
Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc.
$215
PROCEPT BioRobotics Corporation
$214
Antares Pharma, Inc.
$149
UROGEN PHARMA, INC.
$122
Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$93
AbbVie, Inc.
$90
Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$80
Progenics Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$68
Innovation Technologies Inc
$66
COLOPLAST CORP
$64
Amgen Inc.
$63
Coloplast Corp
$63
Axonics Modulation Technologies, Inc.
$61
Verity Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$61
BK Medical Holding Company Inc.
$59
Endo Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$58
BioTissue Holdings, Inc.
$54
Olympus America Inc.
$52
ABBVIE INC.
$51
BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORPORATION
$50
AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP
$42
Medtronic USA, Inc.
$40
NeoTract Inc.
$39
Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC
$37
UroGen Pharma, Inc.
$37
BIOTISSUE HOLDINGS, INC.
$32
Tolmar, Inc.
$32
Merck Sharp & Dohme Corporation
$31
Cook Medical LLC
$30
Blue Earth Diagnostics Limited
$30
Tempus AI, Inc
$30
Teleflex LLC
$29
Pacira Pharmaceuticals Incorporated
$27
CIVCO Medical Instruments
$23
Endo USA, Inc.
$21
Telix Pharmaceuticals
$20
Medtronic, Inc.
$19
AbbVie Inc.
$19
Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc.
$13
Top 3 companies account for 31.0% of all-time payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
ADSTILADRIN · ALTIS · AMS · AQUABEAM SYSTEM · AVEED · Androgel · Axonics · Axonics r-SNM System · Axumin · BALVERSA · BOTOX · Bulkamid · CAMCEVI · Cook Medical Lasers · Dormia · EDEX · ELIGARD · ERLEADA · EVENITY · Erleada · Exparel · GEMTESA · GENERAL ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION · GENERAL ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION · GENERAL THERAPIES · GENERAL BPH · GENTLECATH · ILLUCCIX · INTERSTIM · IRRISEPT · JELMYTO · KEYTRUDA · LUPRON DEPOT · LYNPARZA · LithoVue · Luja Coude · Lupron · Lupron Depot · MYRBETRIQ · Medilas H UroPulse · Moses 550 DFL · Myrbetriq · NEOX · NOCDURNA · Nubeqa · ORGOVYX · OTREXUP · Olympus Laser Devices · Otrexup · PROVENGE · PYLARIFY · RESONANCE · REZUM · Rezum Generator · SEGLENTIS · SOLTIVE · SpeediCath · Titan · Trelstar · UROLIFT · UroLift · XGEVA · XIAFLEX · XTANDI · XYOSTED · Xtandi · bk3000 · bk3500 & bk5000 Ultrasound System · rezum Generator
Should you be concerned? Industry payments are disclosed through CMS Open Payments. Disclosure alone does not establish their purpose, legality, or effect on care. 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 →
Geographic Context
Urology physicians in nearby ZIP areas
69
County median income
$108,185
Nearest hospital to ZIP centroid (approximate)
MEDICAL CITY DENTON
0.0 mi
0.0 mi
Data Sources
| Provider Registry | ✓ NPPES | NPPES snapshot; verify current record |
| Medicare Enrollment | ✓ PECOS | PECOS snapshot |
| Practice Data | ✓ Medicare Util. | Annual (CY lag) |
| Industry Payments | ✓ Open Payments | CY 2024 |
| Disciplinary History | — Not included | 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. Howard is a clinical cardiology specialist, with above-average Medicare volume (top 25% in TX), with 19 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. Howard experienced with automated urinalysis?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Howard performed 948 automated urinalysis services. These records cover Medicare fee-for-service activity, including eligible younger beneficiaries; they do not measure total practice volume or clinical quality.
Does Dr. Howard receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Howard received a total of $6,765 from 50 companies across 322 payment records. A record can group multiple payments. These transfers are publicly disclosed through CMS Open Payments. Disclosure alone does not establish their legality or effect on care. 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. Howard's costs compare to other urology physicians in Denton?
Dr. Howard's average Medicare payment per service is $57. 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. Howard) 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 the presence of registry, enrollment, activity or payment records, not verified experience or clinical quality. 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?
Source publication dates and the snapshots loaded on this site can differ. Rebuilding a page does not refresh its source records. Check the Medicare reporting year and the payment interval shown above; consult the linked official sources for newer releases and current registry details. See our data freshness policy →
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About this page
This page combines public CMS records with calculated summaries and explanatory procedure labels. These transformations are not verbatim federal records. Sources: 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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