Pain Medicine

Training path

1. College (bachelor’s degree) 4 years
2. Medical school (MD or DO) 4 years
3. Anesthesiology / PM&R / neurology residency 4 years
4. Pain medicine fellowship 1 year

Training after medical school: 5 years. From the start of college: about 13 years.

Usual minimum program lengths from ACGME program requirements. Some doctors take extra research years or a second fellowship.

Who they are

• MD (DOs make up the rest) 85%
• Women 19%
• Graduated 35 or more years ago 22%
• Offer telehealth 36%
• Accept Medicare’s approved amount 95%

Sex and credentials from NPPES. Graduation year, telehealth and Medicare assignment from Medicare Care Compare, which covers clinicians enrolled in Medicare.

What they do most for Medicare patients

• Established patient office or other outpatient visit, 30-39 minutes 2,383,060
• Established patient office or other outpatient visit, 20-29 minutes 1,394,332
• Testing for presence of drug, by chemistry analyzers 470,147
• Provision of covid-19 test, nonprescription self-administered and self-collected use, fda approved, authorized or cleared, one test count 457,081
• Injection of anesthetic and/or steroid drug into sacral spine nerve root using imaging guidance, single level 366,771
• New patient office or other outpatient visit, 45-59 minutes 366,312
• Injection of substance into lower spine canal using imaging guidance 323,142
• Injection of lower or sacral spine facet joint using imaging guidance, single level 266,637
• Injection of lower or sacral spine facet joint using imaging guidance, second level 245,510
• Aspiration and/or injection of fluid from large joint 211,504
• Injection of anesthetic or steroid into joint between lower spine and hip bone using imaging guidance 178,538
• Injection of anesthetic and/or steroid drug into sacral spine nerve root using imaging guidance, each additional level 170,410

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Services billed to traditional Medicare in 2023 (Physician and Other Practitioners data); drugs given in the office are left out.

What they prescribe most

• Hydrocodone/Acetaminophen (Hydrocodone-Acetaminophen) 19.2%
• Oxycodone Hcl/Acetaminophen (Endocet, Oxycodone-Acetaminophen, Percocet) 12.1%
• Gabapentin (Gralise, Neurontin) 10.9%
• Oxycodone Hcl (Oxycontin, Roxicodone, Roxybond) 7.2%
• Tramadol Hcl 5.4%
• Pregabalin (Lyrica Cr, Lyrica) 5.4%
• Tizanidine Hcl (Zanaflex) 4.4%
• Morphine Sulfate (Ms Contin) 3.8%
• Cyclobenzaprine Hcl (Amrix) 2.8%
• Meloxicam 2.2%
• Baclofen (Lioresal Intrathecal, Fleqsuvy, Gablofen) 1.9%
• Duloxetine Hcl (Cymbalta, Drizalma Sprinkle) 1.9%
• Methocarbamol 1.6%
• Diclofenac Sodium (Pennsaid) 1.4%
• Celecoxib (Elyxyb, Celebrex) 1.3%

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Share of this specialty’s Medicare Part D prescriptions in 2024, including refills. Select a drug to see which of these clinicians prescribe it most, and where.

Hospitals where the most work

• Northside Hospital Atlanta, GA 55 Pain Medicine at Northside Hospital
• Memorial Hermann Hospital System Houston, TX 48 Pain Medicine at Memorial Hermann Hospital System
• Stanford Health Care Stanford, CA 46 Pain Medicine at Stanford Health Care
• NYU Langone Hospitals New York, NY 42 Pain Medicine at NYU Langone Hospitals
• Cleveland Clinic Cleveland, OH 40 Pain Medicine at Cleveland Clinic
• Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian Newport Beach, CA 38 Pain Medicine at Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian
• Brigham and Women's Hospital Boston, MA 36 Pain Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital
• Baptist Health Medical Center - Jacksonville Jacksonville, FL 35 Pain Medicine at Baptist Health Medical Center - Jacksonville
• Hospital for Special Surgery New York, NY 34 Pain Medicine at Hospital for Special Surgery
• New York-Presbyterian Hospital New York, NY 32 Pain Medicine at New York-Presbyterian Hospital

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Clinicians who list the hospital in Medicare Care Compare. The number opens the list of who works there.

Schools they graduated from most

• New York College of Osteo Medicine of New York Institute of Technology 102
• Wayne State University School of Medicine 93
• Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine 89
• Indiana University School of Medicine 78
• Medical College of Georgia School of Medicine 74
• University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston 67
• New York Medical College 66
• Ohio State University College of Medicine 64
• University of Texas Medical School at San Antonio 62
• Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans 61

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From Medicare Care Compare (Medicare-enrolled clinicians only).