Medicare Enrolled

Dr. Sunil Thomas, MD

Interventional Pain Medicine Physician · Friendswood, TX
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology— Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
Low-engagement
111 E EDGEWOOD DR, Friendswood, TX 77546
2819161012
In practice since 2011 (14 years)
NPI: 1316238025 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. Thomas 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. Thomas

Dr. Sunil Thomas is an interventional pain medicine physician in Friendswood, TX, with 14 years in practice. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Thomas performed 1,338 Medicare services across 800 unique beneficiaries.

Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Thomas received a total of $16,162 from 44 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 385 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in interventional pain medicine 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. Thomas 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.

✓ 14 years in practice▲ 1,338 Medicare services$ $16,162 industry payments

Medicare Practice Summary

Medicare Utilization ↗
1,338
Medicare services
Bottom 47% in TX for interventional pain medicine physician
800
Unique beneficiaries
$91
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · Not a quality rating · How to read this →
~96 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)332$93$276
Steroid injection (triamcinolone)299$1$6
Drug test(s), definitive, utilizing (1) drug identification methods able to identify individual drugs and distinguish between structural isomers (but not necessarily stereoisomers), including, but not limited to gc/ms (any type, single or tandem) and lc/ms205$241$1,071
Office visit, established patient (20-29 min)199$67$192
Drug screening test116$60$186
New patient office visit (45-59 min)100$128$384
Injection of anesthetic or steroid into joint between lower spine and hip bone using imaging guidance35$148$994
Joint injection, major joint33$47$199
Injection of substance into lower spine canal using imaging guidance19$79$1,667
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.

Industry Payment Transparency

Open Payments through 2024 ↗
$16,162
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $2,309/year across 7 years
Top 24% in TX for interventional pain medicine physician
44
Companies
385
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
$15,262 (94.4%)
Consulting
Expert advisory fees, typically reflecting recognized clinical expertise
$900 (5.6%)

Payment trend by year

Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

2024
$3,837
2023
$1,708
2022
$991
2021
$1,478
2020
$1,626
2019
$3,427
2018
$3,095

Payments by company (2024)

Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Nevro Corp.
$3,638
Boston Scientific Corporation
$1,510
Stryker Corporation
$1,176
Medtronic, Inc.
$1,133
Vertos Medical, Inc.
$959
Nutech Spine, Inc.
$900
Nuvectra Corporation
$870
Medtronic USA, Inc.
$765
SI-BONE, INC.
$763
Relievant Medsystems, Inc.
$689
PAINTEQ LLC
$510
BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORPORATION
$472
SI-BONE, Inc.
$448
Abbott Laboratories
$443
Salix Pharmaceuticals, a division of Bausch Health US, LLC
$289
Horizon Therapeutics plc
$218
Azurity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$173
Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc.
$170
Flowonix Medical Incorporated
$158
BioDelivery Sciences International, Inc.
$133
Saluda Medical Americas, Inc.
$103
Epimed International, Inc
$94
Stimwave Technologies Incorporated
$83
Scilex Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$48
ARBOR PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
$46
Bioventus LLC
$43
Radius Health, Inc.
$36
Nalu Medical, Inc.
$36
Daiichi Sankyo Inc.
$29
PFIZER INC.
$23
SCILEX PHARMACEUTICALS INC.
$21
Jazz Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$20
Arbor Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$19
Flexion Therapeutics, Inc.
$18
Kaleo, Inc.
$17
Horizon Pharma plc
$16
Assertio Therapeutics, Inc.
$16
Medtronic Vascular, Inc.
$16
GRT US Holding, Inc.
$15
Shionogi Inc
$12
Pernix Therapeutics Holdings, Inc.
$12
BIODELIVERY SCIENCES INTERNATIONAL, INC.
$11
AKRIMAX PHARMACEUTICALS, LLC
$11
FIDIA PHARMA USA INC.
$5
Top 3 companies account for 39.1% of total payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
ACCURIAN · ADAPTIVESTIM · Accurian · Algovita · Axium INS DRG IPG · BELBUCA · BUNAVAIL 2.1 mg 30-count box · Belbuca · Catheters and Needles · DUEXIS · ETERNA · Evoke · Evzio · GELSYN 3 · GENERAL PAIN MANAGEMENT · GENERAL - PAIN MANAGEMENT · GENERAL PAIN MANAGEMENT · General - Pain Management · General - Therapies · HORIZANT · Horizant · Hymovis · IFUSE IMPLANT · IFUSE IMPLANT SYSTEM · INTELLIS · INTELLIS ADAPTIVESTIM · Intracept · KYPHON Balloon Kyphoplasty · LUCEMYRA · LYRICA · Morphabond ER · Movantik · Nalu Neurostimulation System · OPTABLATE · Omnia · PAINTEQ · PROCLAIM · Prialt · Primlev · Proclaim Family of SCS IPGs · Prometra II · Qutenza · RELISTOR · RELISTOR ORAL · RESTORE · SPECTRA WAVEWRITER · SPECTRA WAVEWRITER (REFURBISHED) · SYNCHROMED · SYNCHROMEDII · Senza · Senza Spinal Cord Stimulation System · Sifix · StimQ Receiver Stimulator Kit Channel A US w/Receiver · Superion · Superion Indirect Decompression System · Symproic · Tymlos · V-LOC 180 · VANTA ADAPTIVESTIM · VenaSeal · WaveWriter Alpha Prime 16 · XTAMPZA · ZOHYDRO ER · ZTLido · Zilretta · Zipsor · iFuse Implant · mild Device Kit
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 $1,208 per 100 Medicare services performed
Looking for a interventional pain medicine physician in Friendswood?
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Geographic Context

Interventional Pain Medicine Physicians within 10 mi
17
Per 100K population
4.8
County median income
$85,348
Nearest hospital
HCA HOUSTON HEALTHCARE CLEAR LAKE
4.0 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. Thomas is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, and low-engagement industry engagement.

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. Thomas experienced with office visit, established patient (30-39 min)?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Thomas performed 332 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. Thomas receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Thomas received a total of $16,162 from 44 companies across 385 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. Thomas's costs compare to other interventional pain medicine physicians in Friendswood?
Dr. Thomas's average Medicare payment per service is $91. 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. Thomas) 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 →