Medicare Enrolled

Dr. Laura Fernandes, MD

Cardiovascular Disease · Shenandoah, TX
Practice pattern: Clinical Cardiology — Primarily office-based clinical cardiology
Low-engagement
920 MEDICAL PLAZA DR, Shenandoah, TX 77380
8325623974
In practice since 2006 (19 years)
NPI: 1811083116 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. Fernandes 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. Fernandes

Dr. Laura Fernandes is a cardiovascular disease specialist in Shenandoah, TX, with 19 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Fernandes performed 7,206 Medicare services across 3,249 unique beneficiaries.

Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Fernandes received a total of $12,634 from 49 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 549 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in cardiovascular disease. 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. Fernandes 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.

✓ 19 years in practice ▲ Top 7% volume in TX $12,634 industry payments

Medicare Practice Summary

Medicare Utilization ↗
7,206
Medicare services
Top 7% in TX for cardiovascular disease
3,249
Unique beneficiaries
$74
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · Not a quality rating · How to read this →
~379 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.

Procedure Volume Avg. paid Avg. submitted
Office visit, established patient (30-39 min) 988 $95 $374
Management using the results of remote vital sign monitoring per calendar month, each additional 20 minutes 803 $31 $116
Remote patient monitoring management, 20 min/month 761 $37 $142
Remote patient monitoring device, 30 days 600 $37 $143
EKG interpretation and report 590 $6 $24
Chronic care management, first 20 min/month 505 $48 $183
Electrocardiogram (EKG), 12-lead 306 $11 $42
Remote monitoring of physiologic parameters, initial set-up and patient education on use of equipment 283 $14 $55
Office visit, established patient (20-29 min) 281 $69 $264
Hospital follow-up visit, moderate complexity 256 $62 $226
Echocardiogram, transthoracic 215 $143 $573
Regadenoson injection (Lexiscan) for heart stress test 185 $42 $629
Ultrasound study of arm or leg veins with compression and maneuvers 172 $139 $550
Chronic care management, additional 20 min/month 153 $37 $138
Office visit, established patient, complex (40-54 min) 133 $137 $526
Technetium tc-99m sestamibi, diagnostic, per study dose 86 $88 $339
Nuclear medicine studies of heart muscle at rest and with stress and spect 80 $338 $1,276
Exercise or drug-induced heart stress test with electrocardiogram (ecg) with supervision and review by physician 78 $48 $210
Chemical destruction of first incompetent vein of arm or leg using imaging guidance 68 $1,292 $4,905
Ultrasound study of one arm or leg veins with compression and maneuvers 68 $90 $348
Initial hospital admission, moderate complexity 64 $102 $383
Ultrasound of both sides of head and neck blood flow 61 $137 $559
Ultrasound study of arm and leg arteries 48 $59 $239
New patient office visit (45-59 min) 46 $121 $490
Ultrasound of leg arteries or artery grafts 44 $139 $708
Sleep study including heart rate, breathing, and sleep time 43 $102 $440
Electrocardiogram (ecg) 2-day continuous with review and report by health care professional 41 $43 $214
Electrocardiogram (ecg) up to 30 days continuous with review and report by health care professional 32 $19 $75
Electrocardiogram (ecg) up to 30 days continuous with transmission of patient triggered events with review and report by health care professional 30 $647 $2,420
Use of a drug to induce depression of consciousness by physician performing a procedure (5 years or older), initial 15 minutes 28 $10 $52
Remote pacemaker/defibrillator monitoring, 90 days 25 $15 $65
Transitional care management services for problem of high complexity 25 $216 $808
Annual depression screening 22 $18 $54
New patient office visit, complex (60-74 min) 20 $169 $643
Initial hospital admission, high complexity 20 $138 $529
Cardiac catheterization 19 $211 $1,540
Transitional care management services for problem of at least moderate complexity 14 $159 $598
Exercise or drug-induced heart stress test with electrocardiogram (ecg) with review by physician 13 $11 $42
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.
3.6% high complexity
11.3% medium
85.1% routine

Industry Payment Transparency

Open Payments through 2024 ↗
$12,634
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $1,805/year across 7 years
Top 27% in TX for cardiovascular disease
49
Companies
549
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
$12,417 (98.3%)
Speaking / Promotional
Speaker programs, honoraria, and industry-sponsored educational events
$217 (1.7%)

Payment trend by year

Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

2024
$1,583
2023
$2,030
2022
$1,909
2021
$3,355
2020
$904
2019
$1,510
2018
$1,342

Payments by company (2024)

Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Abbott Laboratories
$2,230
Amgen Inc.
$1,162
Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation
$1,135
Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc
$949
Medtronic, Inc.
$748
Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC
$608
Cardiovascular Systems Inc.
$547
Boston Scientific Corporation
$521
Esperion Therapeutics, Inc.
$411
E.R. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C.
$379
Medtronic Vascular, Inc.
$373
Astellas Pharma US Inc
$217
PFIZER INC.
$215
ARBOR PHARMACEUTICALS, INC.
$205
Gilead Sciences, Inc.
$199
Arbor Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$198
Tactile Systems Technology Inc
$185
AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals LP
$165
ZOLL Services LLC (A/K/A ZOLL LifeCor Corp)
$160
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$152
Inspire Medical Systems, Inc.
$145
Amarin Pharma Inc.
$141
Merck Sharp & Dohme Corporation
$137
Edwards Lifesciences Corporation
$131
Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc.
$130
HeartFlow, Inc.
$113
iRhythm Technologies, Inc.
$112
SANOFI-AVENTIS U.S. LLC
$97
Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc.
$94
Daiichi Sankyo Inc.
$91
Novo Nordisk Inc
$83
Biosense Webster, Inc.
$79
ARALEZ PHARMACEUTICALS US INC.
$64
BOSTON SCIENTIFIC CORPORATION
$60
Cleerly, Inc.
$50
Bard Peripheral Vascular, Inc.
$46
Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$34
SCPHARMACEUTICALS INC.
$33
CVRx, Inc.
$30
Relypsa, Inc.
$29
Imbed Biosciences Inc.
$29
CashFlow Solutions, LLC
$24
Azurity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
$22
Itamar Medical Inc
$18
Lilly USA, LLC
$18
MEDICOMP INC
$18
HEARTFLOW, INC.
$18
Philips North America LLC
$16
Allergan Inc.
$12
Top 3 companies account for 35.8% of total payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
(CK7) Extended Holter · ABSOLUTE PRO · AMPLATZER · AZURE XT DR MRI SURESCAN · Absolute Pro vascular stent system · BRILINTA · BYSTOLIC · Barostim Neo System · CARTO 3 · CHANTIX · CONFIRM RX · COREVALVE EVOLUT R · Cardiac Monitor · Cleerly Ischemia · Confirm Rx · Connectivity and Remote care · CoreValve Evolut · Corlanor · Diamondback Peripheral · ELIQUIS · ENTRESTO · Edarbi · Edarbyclor · Edwards SAPIEN 3 Transcatheter Heart Valve · Emboshield NAV6 system · EnSite Precision Cardiac Mapping System · Ensite Cardiac Mapping System · FARXIGA · FFRct · FLEXITOUCH · FUROSCIX · Flexitouch Plus · HawkOne · HeartMate 3 Left Ventricular Assist Device · HeartMate 3 Left Ventricular Dev · Herculink Elite renal and biliary stent system · Horizant · ILAB · INJECTAFER · INSPIRE · Inpefa · JARDIANCE · LEQVIO · LEXISCAN · LYMPHA PRESS OPTIMAL PLUS(US) BT · LifeVest · Livalo · MC3 Crescent Jugular Dual Lumen Catheter · MICRA · MULTAQ · Merlin Connectivity and Remote · MitraClip System · NEXLETOL · NEXLIZET · ONPATTRO · OPTIS · Omnilink Elite vascular stent system · Ozempic · PRADAXA · PRALUENT · PRESSUREWIRE · Pacemakers · Perclose ProGlide suture mediated closure system · RESONATE · REVEAL LINQ · Repatha · Saxenda · Supera peripheral stent system · THORATEC HEARTMATE 3 LVAS IMPLANT KIT · TRULICITY · VENASEAL · VERQUVO · Varithena Administration Pack · Vascepa · Veltassa · WATCHMAN · WATCHMAN Access System · WatchPATONE · XARELTO · XIENCE SIERRA · XIENCE SKYPOINT · XIENCE V · Xience Sierra Coronary Stent · Xience Sierra Coronary Stent System · ZIO Patch · ZONTIVITY · Zio monitor
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 (98%) are for meals and travel — low-value interactions that are common across virtually all practicing physicians.

Equivalent to $175 per 100 Medicare services performed
Looking for a cardiovascular disease specialist in Shenandoah?
Compare cardiologists in the Shenandoah area by procedure volume, costs, and industry payment transparency.
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Geographic Context

Cardiologists within 10 mi
154
Per 100K population
23.5
County median income
$97,266
Nearest hospital
HOUSTON METHODIST THE WOODLANDS HOSPITAL
4.2 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. Fernandes is a clinical cardiology specialist, with above-average Medicare volume (top 7% in TX), with low-engagement industry engagement, with 19 years of NPI registration.

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. Fernandes experienced with office visit, established patient (30-39 min)?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Fernandes performed 988 office visit, established patient (30-39 min) 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. Fernandes receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Fernandes received a total of $12,634 from 49 companies across 549 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. Fernandes's costs compare to other cardiologists in Shenandoah?
Dr. Fernandes's average Medicare payment per service is $74. 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. Fernandes) 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 →