Dr. Michael Stephen, M.D.
What this data tells you about Dr. Stephen
Dr. Michael Stephen is an interventional cardiology in Houston, TX, with 14 years in practice. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Stephen performed 6,690 Medicare services across 3,903 unique beneficiaries.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Stephen received a total of $8,169 from 32 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 369 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in interventional cardiology. 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. Stephen 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Regadenoson injection (Lexiscan) for heart stress test | 1,816 | $42 | $118 |
| Office visit, established patient (30-39 min) | 1,371 | $94 | $145 |
| Echocardiogram, transthoracic | 515 | $143 | $1,404 |
| Exercise or drug-induced heart stress test with electrocardiogram (ecg) with supervision and review by physician | 494 | $54 | $575 |
| Rubidium rb-82, diagnostic, per study dose, up to 60 millicuries | 401 | $609 | $1,950 |
| Nuclear medicine studies of blood flow in heart muscle at rest and with stress | 298 | $1,058 | $3,250 |
| Hospital follow-up visit, moderate complexity | 280 | $64 | $150 |
| Chronic care management, additional 20 min/month | 213 | $37 | $118 |
| Chronic care management, first 20 min/month | 182 | $49 | $120 |
| Electrocardiogram (EKG), 12-lead | 154 | $11 | $125 |
| Hospital follow-up visit, high complexity | 141 | $95 | $175 |
| New patient office visit (45-59 min) | 125 | $124 | $396 |
| Nuclear medicine studies of blood flow in heart muscle at rest and with stress with concurrent ct scan | 93 | $1,937 | $6,000 |
| Nuclear medicine studies of heart muscle at rest and with stress and spect | 89 | $346 | $2,115 |
| Technetium tc-99m tetrofosmin, diagnostic, per study dose | 88 | $70 | $500 |
| Initial hospital admission, moderate complexity | 82 | $102 | $167 |
| Injection, sulfur hexafluoride lipid microspheres, per ml | 70 | $15 | $30 |
| Ultrasound of both sides of head and neck blood flow | 58 | $147 | $658 |
| Remote pacemaker monitoring, 90 days | 43 | $22 | $94 |
| Electrocardiogram (ecg) up to 30 days continuous with review and report by health care professional | 32 | $19 | $65 |
| Electrocardiogram (ecg) up to 30 days continuous with transmission of patient triggered events with review and report by health care professional | 32 | $678 | $2,345 |
| Use of a drug to induce depression of consciousness by physician performing a procedure (5 years or older), initial 15 minutes | 32 | $10 | $40 |
| Heart rhythm recording, analysis, report, review, and interpretation of continous external ekg over more than 48 hours up to 7 days | 22 | $184 | $660 |
| Cardiac catheterization | 18 | $207 | $1,500 |
| Ultrasound study of arm or leg veins with compression and maneuvers | 16 | $151 | $503 |
| Ultrasonic guidance for blood vessel access | 14 | $12 | $40 |
| Ultrasound of leg arteries or artery grafts | 11 | $188 | $800 |
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.
Geographic Context
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. Stephen is a cardiac imaging specialist, with above-average Medicare volume (top 7% in TX), 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. Stephen experienced with regadenoson injection (lexiscan) for heart stress test?
Does Dr. Stephen receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
How do Dr. Stephen's costs compare to other interventional cardiologys in Houston?
What does Data Coverage mean?
Is this data up to date?
Explore related providers
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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