Medicare Enrolled
Dr. Christopher Pickett, M.D.
Cardiovascular Disease · Fort Sam Houston, TX
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology
— Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
Low-engagement
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. Pickett 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. Pickett
Dr. Christopher Pickett is a cardiovascular disease specialist in Fort Sam Houston, TX, with 18 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Pickett performed 1,949 Medicare services across 1,357 unique beneficiaries.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Pickett received a total of $11,358 from 26 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 191 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in cardiovascular disease. 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. Pickett 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.
✓ 18 years in practice
▲ 1,949 Medicare services
$11,358 industry payments
Medicare Practice Summary
Medicare Utilization ↗1,949
Medicare services
Bottom 49% in TX for cardiovascular disease
1,357
Unique beneficiaries
$96
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · Not a quality rating · How to read this →
~108 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hospital follow-up visit, high complexity Subsequent hospital inpatient or observation care for an existing patient involving high-level medical decision making, with at least 50 minutes total time on the date of the encounter. |
423 | $90 | $252 |
| Office visit, established patient, complex (40-54 min) An office or outpatient visit for an existing patient lasting between 40 and 54 minutes. This level of service is determined by the total time spent on the date of the encounter. |
289 | $126 | $347 |
| Electrocardiogram (EKG), 12-lead A standard heart rhythm test using at least 12 leads to record electrical activity. A healthcare provider interprets the results and provides a written report. |
204 | $10 | $50 |
| Critical care, first 30-74 min Emergency medical care for a critically ill or injured patient lasting between 30 and 74 minutes. This service involves direct patient care and medical decision making to stabilize the patient. |
123 | $158 | $551 |
| Initial hospital admission, high complexity Initial hospital inpatient or observation care for a new patient involving high-level medical decision making, with at least 75 minutes total time on the date of the encounter. |
114 | $130 | $492 |
| Sedation by physician, initial 15 minutes Administration of a drug to induce depression of consciousness by the physician performing a procedure. This code covers the initial 15 minutes of sedation for patients aged 5 years or older. |
100 | $9 | $32 |
| New patient office visit, complex (60-74 min) | 83 | $159 | $498 |
| 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. |
80 | $98 | $264 |
| Echocardiogram, transthoracic An ultrasound of the heart that uses color to show blood flow, rate, direction, and valve function. |
48 | $138 | $537 |
| Exercise or drug-induced heart stress test with ECG A heart stress test performed using exercise or medication while monitoring the electrocardiogram, with physician review of the results. |
45 | $11 | $39 |
| Nuclear stress test of heart muscle A nuclear medicine imaging test that evaluates blood flow to the heart muscle at rest and during stress using a special camera. |
43 | $56 | $197 |
| Exercise or drug-induced heart stress test with ECG A heart stress test performed using exercise or medication while an electrocardiogram is monitored under physician supervision. |
42 | $16 | $59 |
| Cardiac catheterization | 41 | $171 | $819 |
| Heart muscle strain imaging | 40 | $28 | $103 |
| 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. |
38 | $61 | $176 |
| Insertion of tube in right and left heart chambers and coronary artery for diagnosis with review by radiologist | 35 | $245 | $1,147 |
| Coronary stent placement A procedure to insert a stent into a coronary artery or its branch to keep it open, using balloon dilation during the process. |
26 | $435 | $1,503 |
| Follow-up heart ultrasound An ultrasound of the heart performed to monitor or reassess a previously identified condition or treatment progress. |
26 | $19 | $69 |
| Drug infusion during cardiac catheterization Administration of medication through a catheter inserted into the heart during a cardiac catheterization procedure. |
21 | $74 | $276 |
| Intravascular ultrasound of heart vessel, initial An ultrasound procedure used to evaluate a blood vessel within the heart during a diagnostic or treatment procedure. |
21 | $46 | $569 |
| Ultrasound of heart blood vessel or graft An ultrasound exam to evaluate blood flow in a heart blood vessel or graft, including a radiologist's review of the initial vessel. |
18 | $70 | $542 |
| External EKG monitoring, 8-15 days Continuous external electrocardiogram recording and review over a period of 8 to 15 days to monitor heart rhythm. |
17 | $20 | $66 |
| Continuous external EKG monitoring, 8-15 days This procedure involves recording heart rhythm continuously using an external EKG device over a period of 8 to 15 days. |
16 | $9 | $38 |
| Additional 30 minutes of critical care This code represents an additional 30 minutes of critical care services provided beyond the initial critical care time period. |
16 | $82 | $277 |
| Transcatheter aortic valve replacement via femoral artery A minimally invasive procedure to replace a diseased aortic heart valve using a catheter inserted through the skin and femoral artery. |
14 | $559 | $3,365 |
| 3D radiographic procedure A radiographic imaging technique that creates three-dimensional representations of internal structures. |
14 | $18 | $180 |
| Continuous EKG monitoring review, 48-7 days Review and interpretation of continuous external EKG recordings lasting more than 48 hours up to 7 days. |
12 | $17 | $60 |
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.
7.7% high complexity
12.1% medium
80.2% routine
Industry Payment Transparency
Open Payments through 2024 ↗$11,358
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $1,623/year across 7 years
Top 29% in TX for cardiovascular disease
26
Companies
191
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
$11,358 (100.0%)
Payment trend by year
Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
2024
$1,083
2023
$1,169
2022
$2,082
2021
$456
2020
$920
2019
$2,704
2018
$2,944
Payments by company (2024)
Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Abbott Laboratories
$3,530
Medical Device Business Services, Inc.
$1,420
Edwards Lifesciences Corporation
$1,270
Boston Scientific Corporation
$1,198
Medtronic, Inc.
$1,001
ABIOMED
$947
Inari Medical, Inc.
$493
Medtronic Vascular, Inc.
$373
BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORPORATION
$219
Acist Medical Systems, Inc.
$182
Penumbra, Inc.
$150
ZOLL Services LLC (A/K/A ZOLL LifeCor Corp)
$138
Stryker Corporation
$112
CARDIVA MEDICAL, INC.
$41
HeartFlow, Inc.
$37
iRhythm Technologies, Inc.
$34
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
$31
Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc.
$25
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$25
Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC
$23
AltaThera Pharmaceuticals LLC
$23
Teleflex LLC
$22
Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc
$22
AGEPHA Pharma FZ LLC
$16
Chiesi USA, Inc.
$15
Cook Medical LLC
$13
Top 3 companies account for 54.8% of total payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
AMPLATZER Occluders · AVVIGO Guidance System · AngioJet Ultra 5000A · CARDIVA VASCADE 5F VCS · CARDIVA VASCADE MVP VVCS 6-12F · COREVALVE EVOLUT R · CVI Consumables · Carto 3 System · CoreValve Evolut · ENSITE · EVOLUTION · Edwards SAPIEN 3 Ultra Transcatheter Heart Valve · FFRct · FLOWTRIEVER CATHETER · GENERAL ATHERECTOMY · GUIDELINER · Hi-Torque Pilot guide wire · Impella · Indigo · JARDIANCE · KENGREAL · LEQVIO · LODOCO · LOTUS EDGE · LifeVest · Mitra Clip system · NAVITOR · OptiCross · PRALUENT · ROTABLATOR · S · Sotalol Hydrochloride · T2 · VERQUVO · WATCHMAN · WATCHMAN FLX · XARELTO · Xience Alpine cornary stent system · Xience Sierra Coronary Stent System · ZIO XT Patch
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 (100%) are for meals and travel — low-value interactions that are common across virtually all practicing physicians.
Equivalent to $583 per 100 Medicare services performed
Geographic Context
Cardiologists within 10 mi
150
Per 100K population
7.4
County median income
$70,571
Nearest hospital
Brooke Army Medical Center (FT Sam Houston)
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 measures how much public data is available about a provider — not how good they are. How we calculate this →
Summary
Dr. Pickett is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, with low-engagement industry engagement, with 18 years of NPI registration.
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. Pickett experienced with hospital follow-up visit, high complexity?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Pickett performed 423 hospital follow-up visit, high complexity 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. Pickett receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Pickett received a total of $11,358 from 26 companies across 191 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. Pickett's costs compare to other cardiologists in Fort Sam Houston?
Dr. Pickett's average Medicare payment per service is $96. 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. Pickett) 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. 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.
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