Medicare Enrolled
Dr. Arnold Vardiman, MD
Neurological Surgery · San Antonio, 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. Vardiman 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. Vardiman
Dr. Arnold Vardiman is a neurological surgery specialist in San Antonio, TX, with 21 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Vardiman performed 2,003 Medicare services in 2023. These records do not provide a deduplicated patient total.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Vardiman received a total of $720,313 from 20 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 612 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. Vardiman 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.
✓ 21 years of NPI registration
▲ Top 4% volume in TX
$720,313 industry payments
Medicare Practice Summary — 2023
Medicare Utilization ↗2,003
Medicare services
Top 4% in TX for neurological surgery
Not available
Unique patients (not deduplicated)
$266
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 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. |
542 | $63 | $145 |
| New patient office visit (30-44 min) An initial office visit for a new patient lasting between 30 and 44 minutes. This code is used when the total time spent on the date of the encounter falls within this range. |
447 | $78 | $180 |
| Spine fusion with cage or mesh device insertion A surgical procedure to fuse spine bones by inserting a cage or mesh device into the disc space. |
159 | $189 | $2,000 |
| Lower back spinal fusion with bone and disc removal A surgical procedure to fuse vertebrae in the lower back. It involves removing part of the spine bone and a disc to stabilize the area. |
86 | $1,336 | $5,000 |
| Partial removal of spine bone with nerve release, each additional segment This procedure involves the partial removal of spinal bone to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or nerves. It is billed for each additional spinal segment treated beyond the initial segment. |
86 | $154 | $1,500 |
| Partial removal of spine bone with nerve release during fusion This procedure involves removing part of the bone in a single segment of the lower spine to release the spinal cord or nerves, performed during a spinal fusion. |
85 | $191 | $5,000 |
| Spinal stabilization device placement, 3-6 segments Surgical placement of a device to stabilize three to six vertebrae in the back. |
81 | $561 | $6,000 |
| Telephone medical discussion, 5-10 minutes A phone conversation with a physician lasting between 5 and 10 minutes to discuss medical matters. |
74 | $40 | $85 |
| Brain neurostimulator pulse device insertion with 2+ electrodes Surgical placement of a brain neurostimulator pulse generator connected to two or more electrode arrays. |
62 | $574 | $1,500 |
| Partial removal of spine bone with nerve release, 1 segment A surgical procedure involving the partial removal of a bone segment in the spine to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or nerves. This is performed on a single spinal segment. |
55 | $639 | $5,000 |
| Partial bone removal of additional lower back spine segment during fusion This procedure involves the partial removal of bone from an additional segment of the lower spine to release the spinal cord or nerves. It is performed as part of a spinal fusion surgery in the lower back. |
51 | $165 | $1,500 |
| Spinal fusion with partial bone and disc removal A surgical procedure to join additional segments of the spine. It involves the partial removal of spine bone and disc tissue. |
47 | $350 | $1,500 |
| Spinal fusion of additional segment A surgical procedure to join an additional section of the spine to the existing fusion. This is performed as a separate or subsequent step to stabilize more of the spinal column. |
41 | $285 | $1,500 |
| Placement of stabilizing device to back of 1 spine bone in neck A procedure involving the placement of a stabilizing device on the back of a single vertebra in the neck. |
35 | $555 | $5,500 |
| Partial removal of spine bone with nerve release A surgical procedure involving the partial removal of spinal bone to release pressure on the lower spinal cord or nerves, and/or the removal of a spinal disc. |
22 | $707 | $4,000 |
| 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. |
20 | $86 | $195 |
| Spinal fusion of neck, posterior approach A surgical procedure to join two or more vertebrae in the cervical spine using a back approach to stabilize the neck. |
18 | $943 | $4,500 |
| Partial removal of spine bone with nerve release, 1 segment Surgical removal of part of the spinal bone to relieve pressure on the spinal cord or nerves in one segment. |
18 | $468 | $5,000 |
| Brain neurostimulator electrode insertion Surgical removal of a section of skull bone to allow for the computer-assisted placement of neurostimulator electrodes into the brain, including initial recording. |
14 | $1,622 | $9,500 |
| Additional neurostimulator electrode array insertion This procedure involves the additional placement of neurostimulator electrode arrays in the brain using computer-assisted techniques during skull bone removal. |
14 | $351 | $1,500 |
| Fusion of spine in lower back | 12 | $1,197 | $4,500 |
| Release of lower spinal cord or nerves, single segment A surgical procedure to free the lower spinal cord or nerves from surrounding tissue at a single spinal level. |
12 | $1,126 | $5,250 |
| Spinal fusion with disc removal and nerve release, 1 disc This surgery connects two or more vertebrae in the upper spine to stabilize the area. It involves removing a damaged disc and relieving pressure on the spinal cord or nerve. |
11 | $1,282 | $5,000 |
| Use of operating microscope Use of a specialized microscope during a surgical procedure to provide magnified visualization of the surgical site. |
11 | $161 | $1,500 |
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.
25.5% high complexity
0.0% medium
74.5% routine
Industry Payment Transparency
Open Payments through 2024 ↗$720,313
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $102,902/year across 7 years
Top 1% in TX for neurological surgery
A higher payment rank reflects disclosed industry relationships (consulting, research, speaking) common among subspecialists — not wrongdoing.
20
Companies
612
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
$86,153
2023
$126,632
2022
$106,665
2021
$66,558
2020
$36,807
2019
$131,730
2018
$165,769
Payments by company (2024)
Globus Medical, Inc.
$85,728
Medtronic, Inc.
$309
Boston Scientific Corporation
$78
SI-BONE, INC.
$24
Heron Therapeutics, Inc.
$14
Top 3 companies account for 100.0% of 2024 payments
All-time payments by company (2018-2024) ›
Globus Medical, Inc.
$593,672
Medtronic USA, Inc.
$81,152
Abbott Laboratories
$39,000
Medtronic, Inc.
$5,491
Nevro Corp.
$278
UCB, Inc.
$162
Boston Scientific Corporation
$129
Saluda Medical Americas, Inc.
$54
Orthofix Medical, Inc.
$52
BAXTER HEALTHCARE
$48
Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$46
SI-BONE, Inc.
$38
Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.
$35
Brainlab, Inc.
$32
Arteriocyte Medical Systems, Inc.
$26
ConvaTec Inc.
$24
SI-BONE, INC.
$24
BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORPORATION
$17
Davol Inc.
$17
Heron Therapeutics, Inc.
$14
Top 3 companies account for 99.1% of all-time payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
ACTIVA · ACTIVA PC · ADAPTIVESTIM · ANDEXXA · AQUACEL AG · Andexxa · Avitene Ultrafoam · Biomet SpinalPak · Briviact · CALIBER · CRANIAL · CREO · CREO MIS · CREO ONE Robotic Screw · CREO Self Drilling Screw · CREO Threaded · Cervical-Stim · Cranial · Curve · Deep Brain Stimulation · ELLIPSE · ELLIPSE OCCIPITAL (Royalty) · ELLIPSE/ADDITION C · EXCELSIUS · EXCELSIUS GPS · Ensite Cardiac Mapping System · Evoke SCS · Excelsius - GPS · Excelsius Cranial 1.0 · Excelsius Robotics System · Excelsius3D Imaging System · ExcelsiusGPS Robotic Navigation System · FLOSEAL · FORTIFY · Fast-Cath EP Introducer · HAVEN · HEDRON T · INFUSE · INTELLIS · INTELLIS ADAPTIVESTIM · Infinity DBS Pulse Generators · LAMITRODE · MIDAS REX · MazorX - Renaissance · MazorX Renaissance · NEXFRAME · Neuromodulation Dspsbls and Accs · O-ARM-ST · OCTRODE · Omnia · PERCEPT PC BRAINSENSE · Penta SCS Leads · Percept · Proclaim Family of SCS IPGs · Proclaim IPG · RECLAIM · ROBOTICS · SCS IPGs · SCS leads · SENSIGHT · SOVEREIGN · SPECTRA WAVEWRITER · SenSight · Senza · Senza Spinal Cord Stimulation System · Spine · StealthStation · VANTA ADAPTIVESTIM · Vimpat · WaveWriter Alpha Prime 16 · ZYNRELEF · i7 · iFuse Implant · nanoLOCK-L
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
Neurological surgerists in nearby ZIP areas
64
County median income
$70,571
Nearest hospital to ZIP centroid (approximate)
UNIVERSITY HEALTH SYSTEM
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. Vardiman is a clinical cardiology specialist, with above-average Medicare volume (top 4% in TX), with 21 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. Vardiman experienced with office visit, established patient (20-29 min)?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Vardiman performed 542 office visit, established patient (20-29 min) 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. Vardiman receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Vardiman received a total of $720,313 from 20 companies across 612 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. Vardiman's costs compare to other neurological surgerists in San Antonio?
Dr. Vardiman's average Medicare payment per service is $266. 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. Vardiman) 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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