Medicare Enrolled

Dr. Daniel Lee, M.D.

Thoracic Surgery · Temple, TX
Practice pattern: Cardiac Surgery— Surgically focused practice
Low-engagement
2401 S 31ST ST, Temple, TX 76508
2547242111
In practice since 2008 (17 years)
NPI: 1235386392 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. Lee 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. Lee? Request a correction or review of any data shown here. Provider portal →

What this data tells you about Dr. Lee

Dr. Daniel Lee is a thoracic surgery in Temple, TX, with 17 years in practice. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Lee performed 279 Medicare services across 265 unique beneficiaries.

Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Lee received a total of $10,327 from 17 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 109 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in thoracic 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. Lee 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▲ Top 26% volume in TX$ $10,327 industry payments

Medicare Practice Summary

Medicare Utilization ↗
279
Medicare services
Top 26% in TX for thoracic surgery
265
Unique beneficiaries
$333
Avg. Medicare payment
Medicare patients only (65+ / disabled) · Not a quality rating · How to read this →
~16 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
Replacement of aortic valve through the skin and femoral artery77$612$6,724
Office visit, established patient, complex (40-54 min)42$140$400
Initial hospital admission, high complexity39$138$547
New patient office visit, complex (60-74 min)34$170$542
Coronary artery bypass using artery graft, 1 graft18$1,320$9,517
Harvest of vein using an endoscope16$13$91
New patient office visit (45-59 min)14$131$410
Office visit, established patient (30-39 min)14$100$282
Ultrasonic guidance during surgery13$50$408
Telephone medical discussion with physician, 11-20 minutes12$70$135
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.
38.7% high complexity
0.0% medium
61.3% routine

Industry Payment Transparency

Open Payments through 2024 ↗
$10,327
Total received (2018-2024)
Avg $1,475/year across 7 years
Top 35% in TX for thoracic surgery
17
Companies
109
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
$10,327 (100.0%)

Payment trend by year

Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.

2024
$809
2023
$1,742
2022
$514
2021
$832
2020
$1,080
2019
$2,679
2018
$2,672

Payments by company (2024)

Consulting
Speaking
Meals & Travel
Research
Medtronic Vascular, Inc.
$3,446
W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.
$1,777
Bolton Medical Inc
$1,554
Edwards Lifesciences Corporation
$754
Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc.
$536
Medtronic, Inc.
$477
ABIOMED
$304
Medistim USA, Inc.
$293
ATRICURE, INC.
$237
Baxter Healthcare
$223
Abbott Laboratories
$167
AtriCure, Inc.
$161
Boston Scientific Corporation
$114
Philips Electronics North America Corporation
$109
Cook Medical LLC
$99
Maquet Cardiovascular U.S. Sales, L.L.C.
$39
ZOLL Services LLC (A/K/A ZOLL LifeCor Corp)
$37
Top 3 companies account for 65.6% of total payments
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
(6577) Visions 014 · ATRICURE ATRICLIP LAA EXCLUSION · ATRICURE CRYOICE CRYOABLATION SYSTEM (CRYO2) · Aptus Heli-FX · C3 Delivery System · COREVALVE EVOLUT R · CRM-Research only · Conformable TAG Thoracic Endoprosthesis · CoreValve Evolut · EDWARDS SAPIEN 3 TRANSCATHETER HEART VALVE (THV) · EPI-SENSE GUIDED COAGULATION SYSTEM WITH VISITRAX · Edwards SAPIEN 3 Ultra Transcatheter Heart Valve · Endurant · FLOSEAL · GORE TAG Conformable Thoracic Endoprosthesis · GORE TAG Thoracic Endoprosthesis · GORE VIABAHN Endoprosthesis with Heparin · HeartMate 3 Left Ventricular Dev · INSPIRIS RESILIA aortic valve · Impella · LOTUS EDGE · LifeVest · MODELS · Micra · PREVELEAK · RIBFIX BLU ADVANTAGE · Relay Grafts · Relay Plus · STERNALOCK BLU SYSTEM · SWAN-GANZ · SYNERGY ABLATION SYSTEM · SternaLock Blu · TREO ABDOMINAL STENT-GRAFT SYSTEM · VALIANT CAPTIVIA · VASOVIEW · VISA AF MRI VR SURESCAN · Valiant Captivia · Valiant Navion · ZENITH · miraq
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 (100%) are for meals and travel — low-value interactions that are common across virtually all practicing physicians.

Equivalent to $3,701 per 100 Medicare services performed
Looking for a thoracic surgery in Temple?
Compare thoracic surgerys in the Temple area by procedure volume, costs, and industry payment transparency.
Browse thoracic surgerys nearby

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. Lee is a cardiac surgery specialist, with above-average Medicare volume (top 26% in TX), 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. Lee experienced with replacement of aortic valve through the skin and femoral artery?
Based on Medicare claims data, Dr. Lee performed 77 replacement of aortic valve through the skin and femoral artery 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. Lee receive payments from pharmaceutical companies?
Yes. Dr. Lee received a total of $10,327 from 17 companies across 109 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. Lee's costs compare to other thoracic surgerys in Temple?
Dr. Lee's average Medicare payment per service is $333. 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. Lee) 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 →