Medicare Enrolled

Dr. Hongbo Liu, M.D.

Orthopedic Surgery · San Antonio, TX
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology— Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
Low-engagement
325 E SONTERRA BLVD STE 110, San Antonio, TX 78258
2104021222
In practice since 2008 (17 years)
NPI: 1275791303 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. Liu 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. Liu? Request a correction or review of any data shown here. Provider portal →

What this data tells you about Dr. Liu

Dr. Hongbo Liu is an orthopedic surgery in San Antonio, TX, with 17 years in practice. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Liu performed 978 Medicare services across 400 unique beneficiaries.

Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Liu received a total of $19,104 from 32 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 208 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in orthopedic surgery. 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. Liu 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.

✓ 17 years in practice▲ 978 Medicare services$ $19,104 industry payments

Medicare Practice Summary

Medicare Utilization ↗
978
Medicare services
Bottom 46% in TX for orthopedic surgery
400
Unique beneficiaries
$49
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · Not a quality rating · How to read this →
~58 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
Dexamethasone injection (steroid)430$0$4
Office visit, established patient (30-39 min)145$90$259
Contrast dye for imaging, lower concentration118$0$6
Office visit, established patient (20-29 min)58$63$174
New patient office visit (45-59 min)52$108$397
Injection of anesthetic and/or steroid drug into sacral spine nerve root using imaging guidance, single level51$199$664
Office visit, established patient, complex (40-54 min)51$121$350
New patient office visit, complex (60-74 min)44$150$478
Injection of anesthetic and/or steroid drug into sacral spine nerve root using imaging guidance, each additional level29$85$288
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 ↗
$19,104
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $2,729/year across 7 years
Top 22% in TX for orthopedic surgery
32
Companies
208
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
$17,448 (91.3%)
Consulting
Expert advisory fees, typically reflecting recognized clinical expertise
$1,500 (7.9%)
Speaking / Promotional
Speaker programs, honoraria, and industry-sponsored educational events
$155 (0.8%)

Payment trend by year

Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

2024
$1,850
2023
$636
2022
$936
2021
$2,948
2020
$2,601
2019
$6,056
2018
$4,077

Payments by company (2024)

Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Centinel Spine, LLC
$4,621
Medtronic USA, Inc.
$4,232
Stryker Corporation
$2,259
Globus Medical, Inc.
$1,329
Alliance Partners LLC
$1,094
Medtronic, Inc.
$950
Abbott Laboratories
$892
Aesculap Implant Systems, LLC
$807
NuVasive, Inc.
$569
SI-BONE, INC.
$424
Providence Medical Technology, Inc.
$310
Orthofix Medical, Inc.
$295
SI-BONE, Inc.
$258
SPINAL ELEMENTS, INC.
$207
Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.
$161
SEASPINE ORTHOPEDICS CORPORATION
$155
Nevro Corp.
$131
PAINTEQ LLC
$71
Davol Inc.
$45
Radius Health, Inc.
$44
Alphatec Spine, Inc
$40
Smith+Nephew, Inc.
$36
Boston Scientific Corporation
$29
Relievant Medsystems, Inc.
$27
Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc.
$22
Spineology Inc.
$17
Terumo BCT, Inc.
$16
Arteriocyte Medical Systems, Inc.
$14
PROVIDENCE MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY, INC.
$13
Smith & Nephew, Inc.
$12
DePuy Synthes Sales Inc.
$11
Lilly USA, LLC
$11
Top 3 companies account for 58.2% of total payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
7D Surgical System · ACCURIAN · ACTIVL ARTIFICIAL DISC · AccelStim · Alamo Cages · Archon · Avitene Ultrafoam · CAPRI · CASCADIA · CAVUX Cervical Cage · CD HORIZON · CD HORIZON SPINAL SYSTEM · COHERE · CREO MIS · Cervical-Stim · EBI Bone Healing System · ES2 · EVEREST SPINAL SYSTEM · EXCELSIUS GPS · Eon Family of SCS IPGs · Excelsius - GPS · Excelsius Robotics System · FORTEO · GENERAL PAIN MANAGEMENT · HARVEST BMAC · IFUSE IMPLANT · INTELLIS · INTELLIS ADAPTIVESTIM · IVS - IVAS · Intracept · MESA · MONTEREY AL · MONUMENT · Magellan · MazorX - Renaissance · MazorX Renaissance · Medical Device · Meridian · Mobi-C · Multiple Products · NAV - NEW PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT · Nakoma Cervical System · O-ARM-ST · OPTIMESH EXPANDABLE INTERBODY FUSION SYSTEM · PAINTEQ · PERIMETER · PICO7Y · PRESTIGE · PROCLAIM · PRODISC C · PRODISC L · Physio-Stim · Proclaim Family of SCS IPGs · Propel · RENASYS GO · RESTORE · SCS IPGs · SEGLENTIS · SERRATO · SPINEJACK · STALIF C FLX · STALIF M FLX · Santyl · Senza · Simplify Cervical Artificial Disc · Spinal-Stim · Swannshidi · TLIF · TLX · TRITANIUM · Tymlos · UNID_PASS · VERTECEM · XIA 3 · XLIF · iFuse Implant · ifuse implant
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 (91%) are for meals and travel — low-value interactions that are common across virtually all practicing physicians.

Equivalent to $1,953 per 100 Medicare services performed
Looking for a orthopedic surgery in San Antonio?
Compare orthopedic surgerys in the San Antonio area by procedure volume, costs, and industry payment transparency.
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Geographic Context

Orthopedic Surgerys within 10 mi
173
Per 100K population
8.5
County median income
$70,571
Nearest hospital
SOUTH TEXAS SPINE AND SURGICAL HOSPITAL
0.0 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. Liu is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, and low-engagement industry engagement, with 17 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. Liu experienced with dexamethasone injection (steroid)?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Liu performed 430 dexamethasone injection (steroid) 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. Liu receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Liu received a total of $19,104 from 32 companies across 208 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. Liu's costs compare to other orthopedic surgerys in San Antonio?
Dr. Liu's average Medicare payment per service is $49. 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. Liu) 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 →