Dr. David Nelson, M.D.
What this data tells you about Dr. Nelson
Dr. David Nelson is a legal medicine in Houston, TX, with 19 years in practice. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Nelson performed 2,484 Medicare services across 1,981 unique beneficiaries.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Nelson received a total of $7,122 from 53 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 430 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in legal medicine. 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. Nelson 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.
Medicare Practice Summary
Medicare Utilization ↗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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Office visit, established patient (30-39 min) | 344 | $88 | $292 |
| Comprehensive metabolic blood panel | 271 | $10 | $31 |
| Complete blood count (CBC) with differential | 239 | $8 | $20 |
| Lipid panel (cholesterol and triglycerides) | 235 | $13 | $40 |
| Hemoglobin A1c test (diabetes monitoring) | 191 | $10 | $25 |
| Thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) test | 179 | $16 | $50 |
| Office visit, established patient (20-29 min) | 173 | $67 | $206 |
| Annual wellness visit, follow-up | 168 | $131 | $298 |
| Urine microalbumin test (kidney screening) | 89 | $6 | $12 |
| Creatinine test (kidney function) | 89 | $5 | $11 |
| Prostate cancer screening; prostate specific antigen test (psa) | 60 | $19 | $40 |
| Drug injection, under skin or into muscle | 51 | $10 | $32 |
| Blood draw (venipuncture) | 41 | $8 | $17 |
| Advance care planning consultation, first 30 min | 39 | $76 | $188 |
| Office visit, established patient (10-19 min) | 35 | $42 | $128 |
| Flu vaccine administration | 31 | $31 | $50 |
| Annual depression screening | 30 | $19 | $43 |
| Flu vaccine, high-dose | 28 | $72 | $122 |
| Transitional care management services for problem of at least moderate complexity | 24 | $160 | $467 |
| Detection test by immunoassay technique for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus and influenza | 21 | $46 | $131 |
| Annual alcohol misuse screening, 5 to 15 minutes | 21 | $19 | $43 |
| PSA test (prostate cancer screening) | 20 | $18 | $40 |
| Initial preventive physical examination; face-to-face visit, services limited to new beneficiary during the first 12 months of medicare enrollment | 18 | $167 | $377 |
| Automated urinalysis | 17 | $2 | $5 |
| Vitamin D level test | 17 | $29 | $60 |
| Annual wellness visit; includes a personalized prevention plan of service (pps), initial visit | 15 | $167 | $376 |
| Testosterone (hormone) level, total | 14 | $25 | $52 |
| Electrocardiogram (EKG), 12-lead | 13 | $11 | $34 |
| Assessment of emotional or behavioral problems | 11 | $3 | $12 |
Industry Payment Transparency
Open Payments through 2024 ↗Payment profile
Industry payments classified by relationship type. Not all payments are equal — research and consulting reflect different relationships than speaking programs or meals.
Payment trend by year
Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
Payments by company (2024)
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
Most payments (100%) are for meals and travel — low-value interactions that are common across virtually all practicing physicians. Total industry engagement is in the top 7% for legal medicine in TX.
Geographic Context
5.9 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. Nelson is a clinical cardiology specialist, with above-average Medicare volume (top 19% in TX), and high industry engagement (low-engagement, top 7%), 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. Nelson experienced with office visit, established patient (30-39 min)?
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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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