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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.
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Methodology•Download Data
  1. Home
  2. Specialties
  3. Thoracic Surgery

Thoracic Surgery

Medicare spending analysis for Thoracic Surgery providers

🔎 Data Analysis

Thoracic Surgery accounts for $1.5B in Medicare payments across 21.2K providers.

The specialty's average markup of 4.7x is above the overall Medicare average of 3.77x.

AI-generated analysis based on Medicare payment data.

Total Payments (10yr)
$1.5B
Top Providers
50
States with Providers
52

Spending Trends (2014-2023)

Year-over-Year Breakdown

YearPaymentsServicesProvidersYoY Change
2014$150.7M873.0K1.9K—
2015$157.7M851.3K2.0K+4.6%
2016$157.9M832.7K2.0K+0.2%
2017$158.2M836.6K2.1K+0.2%
2018$156.7M831.8K2.1K-1.0%
2019$161.2M784.9K2.2K+2.9%
2020$135.2M648.5K2.1K-16.1%
2021$150.5M703.9K2.2K+11.3%
2022$138.1M622.0K2.2K-8.2%
2023$137.5M625.9K2.3K-0.4%

Top Thoracic Surgery Providers

#ProviderStatePaymentsServicesAvg/Service
1Andrei GurskyMD$4.7M20.1K$234.75
2John DavisTX$1.8M1.7K$1.0K
3Barry ZadehOH$1.2M2.4K$496.15
4Wilton NeddDC$1.2M224$5.2K
5James ArmstrongMI$1.1M1.5K$709.13
6Gregory MessnerTX$1.0M1.8K$554.77
7Majid AizedMI$884.6K4.0K$222.49
8Gary JonesLA$829.4K14.4K$57.71
9Ghassan MoasisCA$754.6K1.2K$651.62
10Robert FriedKY$719.3K3.8K$191.37
11James AlbertCO$656.2K3.8K$171.55
12Kunda BiswasMD$544.9K713$764.17
13James FongerGA$540.2K1.4K$379.36
14Eric PresserCA$535.2K5.6K$95.45
15Thomas MilitanoDC$511.2K4.8K$107.59
16Blaine BordersLA$506.7K1.0K$499.24
17Richard GitterLA$474.0K1.1K$420.62
18James WuCA$448.5K4.8K$92.55
19Christopher LeachCA$444.7K3.9K$114.73
20John RandolphOK$422.4K1.3K$325.44
21William SimpsonAL$419.0K1.6K$257.67
22Anthony SquillaroNJ$415.6K1.1K$362.02
23Lawrence SchmettererOH$409.5K1.2K$342.12
24Mathew WilliamsNY$403.1K898$448.87
25Joseph LamelasFL$401.4K564$711.68

Top Procedures

CodeDescriptionPaymentsServicesAvg/Service
33533Coronary artery bypass using artery graft, 1 graft$28.5M22.8K$1.2K
33361Replacement of aortic valve through the skin and femoral artery$15.1M25.5K$591.78
99205New patient office or other outpatient visit, 60-74 minutes$7.0M43.9K$159.49
37229Removal of plaque in artery of leg, initial vessel$6.3M885$7.1K
32663Exam of lung with removal of lung lobe using an endoscope$4.5M4.2K$1.1K
99204New patient office or other outpatient visit, 45-59 minutes$4.4M36.8K$119.98
99214Established patient office or other outpatient visit, 30-39 minutes$4.3M47.3K$90.23
33405Replacement of aortic valve on heart-lung machine$4.1M2.9K$1.4K
37225Removal of plaque in arteries of leg$3.6M784$4.6K
99213Established patient office or other outpatient visit, 20-29 minutes$3.3M53.2K$62.73
99223Initial hospital care with moderate level of medical decision making, if using time, at least 75 minutes$3.0M22.0K$136.25
99215Established patient office or other outpatient visit, 40-54 minutes$2.4M18.8K$130.02
33518Coronary artery bypass using vein or artery graft, 2 grafts$2.3M7.6K$298.91
99232Subsequent hospital care with moderate levelof medical decision making, if using time, at least 35 minutes$2.2M35.1K$63.33
36465Injection of chemical agent into single incompetent vein of leg using ultrasound guidance$2.2M2.1K$1.1K
33430Replacement of mitral valve on heart-lung machine$2.2M1.1K$2.0K
32666Initial removal of wedge of lung tissue using an endoscope$1.7M2.8K$630.14
32674Removal of lymph nodes of chest cavity using an endoscope$1.6M9.8K$165.37
99222Initial hospital care with straightforward or low-level medical decision making, if using time, at least 55 minutes$1.6M15.3K$102.00
37227Removal of plaque and insertion of stents in arteries of leg$1.5M169$8.8K

Geographic Distribution

FL
$12.9M
194 providers
CA
$12.5M
196 providers
TX
$12.4M
187 providers
NY
$9.4M
175 providers
MD
$6.8M
29 providers
PA
$6.4M
153 providers
OH
$5.5M
96 providers
IL
$4.9M
74 providers
MA
$4.7M
88 providers
MI
$4.5M
82 providers
GA
$4.2M
69 providers
NJ
$3.9M
67 providers
VA
$3.6M
51 providers
LA
$2.9M
33 providers
IN
$2.6M
60 providers
NC
$2.5M
54 providers
KY
$2.5M
43 providers
AL
$2.4M
31 providers
TN
$2.4M
43 providers
DC
$2.3M
12 providers
AZ
$2.2M
34 providers
WA
$2.1M
40 providers
SC
$2.1M
38 providers
MO
$1.7M
42 providers
CO
$1.6M
35 providers
OR
$1.6M
27 providers
WI
$1.5M
31 providers
MN
$1.3M
37 providers
NE
$1.2M
17 providers
OK
$1.1M
12 providers

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Data Sources

  • • Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
  • • Medicare Provider Utilization and Payment Data (2014-2023)
  • • CMS National Health Expenditure Data

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.