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Data Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data
Disclaimer: This site is an independent journalism project. Data analysis and editorial content are not affiliated with or endorsed by CMS or any government agency. All spending figures are based on publicly available Medicare payment records.
Sister Sites: OpenMedicaid ยท OpenFeds ยท OpenSpending

ยฉ 2026 OpenMedicare. Independent data journalism. Built by TheDataProject.ai

Methodologyโ€ขDownload Data
  1. Home
  2. Providers
  3. Stephen Hightower
๐Ÿฅ
MDIndividual

Stephen Hightower, M.D.

NPI: 1972603371
Long Beach, CA
10 years of data
Urology
$3.3M
Total Payments
28.1K
Beneficiaries
58.7K
Services
3.46x
Markup Ratio

Peer Comparison

98th
percentile in specialty
This provider$3.3M
Specialty median$142.4K

๐Ÿ“‹ Key Findings

1Billed $3.3M over 10 years
23.46x markup ratio (above median)
398th percentile in Urology by payments
4Payments surged 63% in 2022
511 procedures with >3x markup
โœ“ No flags detected

๐Ÿ”Ž Data Analysis

This provider's $3.3M in total Medicare payments ranks in the 98th percentile of Urology providers nationally.

Medicare payments to this provider grew 157% from 2014 to 2023.

AI-generated analysis based on Medicare payment data.

Annual Medicare Payments

Annual Services Provided

Avg Payment per Service

Markup Ratio Over Time

๐Ÿ“ˆ

Notable: Payments increased 63% in 2022

Year-over-year payment surges can indicate changes in practice volume, new services, or billing pattern shifts.

Submitted Charges vs. Medicare Payments

Average per-service amounts submitted by the provider compared to what Medicare actually paid โ€” the gap represents the markup.

YearAvg SubmittedAvg PaidMarkup RatioGap per ServiceTotal PaymentsServicesBeneficiaries
2014$607.93$179.483.39x$428.45$257.3K4.5K2.4K
2015$659.79$128.935.12x$530.86$296.8K5.1K2.6K
2016$794.68$163.604.86x$631.08$244.8K4.2K2.3K
2017$424.57$110.413.85x$314.16$208.9K3.9K2.1K
2018$535.61$109.154.91x$426.46$218.3K4.0K2.0K
2019$711.07$145.744.88x$565.33$220.7K3.8K2.0K
2020$576.28$115.434.99x$460.85$239.8K3.9K2.0K
2021$1.1K$199.635.47x$891.51$345.0K4.2K2.1K
2022$832.89$148.255.62x$684.64$562.0K11.1K4.9K
2023$745.34$132.665.62x$612.68$662.2K14.1K5.9K

Top Procedures (20)

99214Established patient office or other outpatient, visit typically 25 minutesโš  3.1x markup
$1.1M
12.1K services$91.82/svc3.11x markup
52000Diagnostic examination of the bladder and bladder canal (urethra) using an endoscopeโš  3.1x markup
$259.9K
1.4K services$181.46/svc3.10x markup
99213Established patient office or other outpatient visit, typically 15 minutes
$199.0K
3.4K services$59.28/svc1.95x markup
99215Established patient office or other outpatient, visit typically 40 minutesโš  3.4x markup
$167.8K
1.3K services$131.00/svc3.42x markup
99204New patient office or other outpatient visit, typically 45 minutesโš  3.0x markup
$118.7K
905 services$131.21/svc3.02x markup
87801Detection test by nucleic acid for multiple organisms, amplified probe(s) technique
$105.7K
1.5K services$68.91/svc2.06x markup
J9217Leuprolide acetate (for depot suspension), 7.5 mgโš  3.3x markup
$77.7K
464 services$167.49/svc3.33x markup
51729Insertion of electronic device into bladder with voiding and bladder canal (urethra) pressure studiesโš  3.1x markup
$70.1K
222 services$315.94/svc3.09x markup
87651Detection test by nucleic acid for strep (streptococcus, group a), amplified probe technique
$68.7K
2.0K services$34.43/svc2.52x markup
87798Detection test by nucleic acid for organism, amplified probe technique
$68.7K
2.0K services$34.43/svc2.52x markup
87640Detection test by nucleic acid for staphylococcus aureus (bacteria), amplified probe technique
$68.7K
2.0K services$34.43/svc2.51x markup
87641Detection test by nucleic acid for staphylococcus aureus, methicillin resistant (mrsa bacteria), amplified probe technique
$68.7K
2.0K services$34.43/svc2.51x markup
87481Detection test for candida species (yeast), amplified probe technique
$68.7K
2.0K services$34.45/svc2.51x markup
87500Detection test by nucleic acid for vancomycin resistance strep (vre), amplified probe technique
$68.6K
2.0K services$34.43/svc2.52x markup
87653Detection test by nucleic acid for strep (streptococcus, group b), amplified probe technique
$68.6K
2.0K services$34.45/svc2.52x markup
76775Ultrasound behind abdominal cavity, limitedโš  5.4x markup
$65.9K
1.3K services$50.88/svc5.39x markup
50590Shock wave crushing of kidney stonesโš  5.7x markup
$55.7K
114 services$488.53/svc5.65x markup
52441Insertion of implant in bladder canal (urethra) within prostate gland using an endoscope, single implantโš  5.2x markup
$53.0K
42 services$1.3K/svc5.23x markup
81015Urinalysis using microscopeโš  5.7x markup
$51.0K
14.5K services$3.52/svc5.68x markup
55700Biopsy of prostate glandโš  3.4x markup
$47.0K
231 services$203.41/svc3.35x markup
Show detailed table โ–พ
CodeDescriptionServicesPaymentsAvg/ServiceMarkup
99214Established patient office or other outpatient, visit typically 25 minutes12.1K$1.1M$91.823.11x
52000Diagnostic examination of the bladder and bladder canal (urethra) using an endoscope1.4K$259.9K$181.463.10x
99213Established patient office or other outpatient visit, typically 15 minutes3.4K$199.0K$59.281.95x
99215Established patient office or other outpatient, visit typically 40 minutes1.3K$167.8K$131.003.42x
99204New patient office or other outpatient visit, typically 45 minutes905$118.7K$131.213.02x
87801Detection test by nucleic acid for multiple organisms, amplified probe(s) technique1.5K$105.7K$68.912.06x
J9217Leuprolide acetate (for depot suspension), 7.5 mg464$77.7K$167.493.33x
51729Insertion of electronic device into bladder with voiding and bladder canal (urethra) pressure studies222$70.1K$315.943.09x
87651Detection test by nucleic acid for strep (streptococcus, group a), amplified probe technique2.0K$68.7K$34.432.52x
87798Detection test by nucleic acid for organism, amplified probe technique2.0K$68.7K$34.432.52x
87640Detection test by nucleic acid for staphylococcus aureus (bacteria), amplified probe technique2.0K$68.7K$34.432.51x
87641Detection test by nucleic acid for staphylococcus aureus, methicillin resistant (mrsa bacteria), amplified probe technique2.0K$68.7K$34.432.51x
87481Detection test for candida species (yeast), amplified probe technique2.0K$68.7K$34.452.51x
87500Detection test by nucleic acid for vancomycin resistance strep (vre), amplified probe technique2.0K$68.6K$34.432.52x
87653Detection test by nucleic acid for strep (streptococcus, group b), amplified probe technique2.0K$68.6K$34.452.52x
76775Ultrasound behind abdominal cavity, limited1.3K$65.9K$50.885.39x
50590Shock wave crushing of kidney stones114$55.7K$488.535.65x
52441Insertion of implant in bladder canal (urethra) within prostate gland using an endoscope, single implant42$53.0K$1.3K5.23x
81015Urinalysis using microscope14.5K$51.0K$3.525.68x
55700Biopsy of prostate gland231$47.0K$203.413.35x

Markup Analysis

Charge-to-Payment Ratio

3.46x

This provider submits charges 3.46 times higher than what Medicare actually pays.

What This Means

A markup ratio of 3.46x means for every $100 Medicare pays, this provider initially charges $346. This is higher than the national average.

Location

Long Beach, CA

Provider Verification

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Data Sources

  • โ€ข Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
  • โ€ข Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data (2014-2023)
  • โ€ข National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES)

Last Updated: February 2026 (data through 2023, the latest CMS release)

Note: All data is from publicly available Medicare records. OpenMedicare is an independent journalism project not affiliated with CMS.

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