Medicare Enrolled
Dr. Ruth Wintz, M.D.
Nephrology · Houston, 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. Wintz 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 →
Are you Dr. Wintz?
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What this data tells you about Dr. Wintz
Dr. Ruth Wintz is a nephrology specialist in Houston, TX, with 20 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Wintz performed 3,694 Medicare services in 2023. These records do not provide a deduplicated patient total.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Wintz received a total of $22,976 from 40 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 339 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. Wintz 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.
✓ 20 years of NPI registration
▲ Top 8% volume in TX
$22,976 industry payments
Medicare Practice Summary — 2023
Medicare Utilization ↗3,694
Medicare services
Top 8% in TX for nephrology
Not available
Unique patients (not deduplicated)
$53
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Remote vital sign monitoring management, each additional 20 minutes This code covers the time spent by a provider managing patient data from remote vital sign monitoring devices. It applies to each additional 20-minute increment beyond the initial monthly service period. |
705 | $32 | $46 |
| Chronic care management, additional 20 min/month This service covers an extra 20 minutes of clinical staff time directed by a healthcare professional for managing two or more chronic conditions each calendar month. |
641 | $38 | $54 |
| Remote patient monitoring management, 20 min/month Management based on results from remote vital sign monitoring for the first 20 minutes per calendar month. |
471 | $36 | $46 |
| Remote patient monitoring device, 30 days Initial setup of devices for remote monitoring of body functions with daily data transmission or alerts. This service covers the first 30 days of the monitoring period. |
444 | $40 | $77 |
| Chronic care management, first 20 min/month This service covers the first 20 minutes of clinical staff time directed by a healthcare professional each calendar month to manage chronic conditions. |
413 | $50 | $78 |
| 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. |
259 | $96 | $182 |
| 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. |
175 | $86 | $167 |
| 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. |
175 | $64 | $121 |
| 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. |
153 | $126 | $233 |
| Remote physiologic monitoring setup and education Initial setup of remote monitoring equipment and patient education on its use. |
60 | $15 | $30 |
| 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. |
58 | $131 | $265 |
| Hemodialysis, single evaluation A dialysis procedure to filter waste from the blood, performed with a physician's evaluation. |
56 | $58 | $109 |
| New patient office visit, complex (60-74 min) | 50 | $162 | $278 |
| 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. |
20 | $62 | $118 |
| 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. |
14 | $105 | $200 |
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 ↗$22,976
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $3,282/year across 7 years
Top 6% in TX for nephrology
A higher payment rank reflects disclosed industry relationships (consulting, research, speaking) common among subspecialists — not wrongdoing.
40
Companies
339
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
$793
2023
$425
2022
$2,836
2021
$709
2020
$3,012
2019
$5,059
2018
$10,142
Payments by company (2024)
Travere Therapeutics, Inc.
$150
Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.
$145
ASAHI INTECC USA, INC.
$91
Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc.
$68
Amgen Inc.
$57
SANOFI-AVENTIS U.S. LLC
$50
CALLIDITAS THERAPEUTICS US INC.
$44
Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$40
AKEBIA THERAPEUTICS INC
$39
Novo Nordisk Inc
$34
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
$32
Vifor Pharma, Inc.
$24
Daiichi Sankyo Inc.
$20
Top 3 companies account for 48.6% of 2024 payments
All-time payments by company (2018-2024) ›
OPKO Pharmaceuticals, LLC
$5,601
Horizon Therapeutics plc
$4,860
Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc.
$4,074
Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.
$3,954
Amgen Inc.
$706
Relypsa, Inc.
$570
AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP
$401
Veloxis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$399
Vifor Pharma, Inc.
$293
GlaxoSmithKline, LLC.
$235
Mallinckrodt Hospital Products Inc.
$201
CALLIDITAS THERAPEUTICS US INC.
$169
Travere Therapeutics, Inc.
$166
Boston Scientific Corporation
$141
Mallinckrodt LLC
$115
AKEBIA THERAPEUTICS INC
$112
Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$94
ASAHI INTECC USA, INC.
$91
Mallinckrodt Enterprises LLC
$89
Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc.
$87
Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$68
Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$58
Novo Nordisk Inc
$55
SANOFI-AVENTIS U.S. LLC
$50
Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc.
$48
Amicus Therapeutics, Inc.
$36
Horizon Pharma plc
$36
Genentech USA, Inc.
$36
AngioDynamics, Inc.
$32
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
$32
PFIZER INC.
$24
Daiichi Sankyo Inc.
$20
Retrophin, Inc.
$20
Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc.
$17
Cardiovascular Systems Inc.
$17
E.R. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C.
$17
ARBOR PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
$16
Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc
$15
AMAG Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$12
Lilly USA, LLC
$11
Top 3 companies account for 63.3% of all-time payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
(815) Thiola · ACTHAR · AURYXIA · Auryxia · BENLYSTA · BRILINTA · Critline - Monitors · Crysvita · ENVARSUS · Edarbyclor · Envarsus · Envarsus XR (SP) · FARXIGA · FERAHEME · GALAFOLD · INJECTAFER · JYNARQUE · KRYSTEXXA · Kerendia · LOKELMA · NATPARA (PARATHYROID HORMONE) · NULOJIX · Ozempic · PERIPHERAL VASCULAR · PREVNAR - 13 · Parsabiv · Peripheral Orbital Atherectomy System · RAYALDEE · Rayaldee · Rayaldee (old) · Repatha · Rituxan · Rivfloza · SAMSCA · SOLIRIS · TARPEYO · THYMOGLOBULIN · TRULICITY · ULTOMIRIS · Vafseo · Velphoro · Veltassa · XARELTO
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
Nephrologists in nearby ZIP areas
185
County median income
$73,104
Nearest hospital to ZIP centroid (approximate)
MEMORIAL HERMANN - TEXAS MEDICAL CENTER
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. Wintz is a clinical cardiology specialist, with above-average Medicare volume (top 8% in TX), with 20 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. Wintz experienced with remote vital sign monitoring management, each additional 20 minutes?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Wintz performed 705 remote vital sign monitoring management, each additional 20 minutes 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. Wintz receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Wintz received a total of $22,976 from 40 companies across 339 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. Wintz's costs compare to other nephrologists in Houston?
Dr. Wintz's average Medicare payment per service is $53. 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. Wintz) 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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