Christopher Meltsakos, MD
Sports Medicine · Sulphur Springs, TXNPI 1508277153
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — grants (47.6%), education and travel and lodging — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. 12 manufacturers reported payments, led by Arthrex at 47.6% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $20,244 and has fallen 99.2% since, to $157 in 2025. Among sports medicine clinicians in TX with any reported payments, this total sits in the top 10% — high for the specialty, which is a reason to read the composition above rather than the number alone.
Across 53 payments — averaging $792.43 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Arthrex$20K
- Pylant Medical$13K
- Smith+Nephew$5K
- Stryker$2K
- Medinc Of Texas$1K
- Globus Medical$193
- plus $178 from 6 others
What the payments were for
- Grants$20,00048%
- Travel & lodging$1,4093%
- Food & beverage$1,1133%
- Education$19,47746%
General payments by program year
Who reported the general payments
Companies are grouped under their corporate parent — a single manufacturer often files under several CMS reporting entities. Research and ownership payments are counted separately and are not in this table.
| Company | Payments | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Arthrex | 1 | $20,000 |
| Pylant Medical | 17 | $13,443 |
| Smith+Nephew | 3 | $5,058 |
| Stryker | 22 | $1,962 |
| Medinc Of Texas | 2 | $1,164 |
| Globus Medical | 2 | $193 |
| Molnlycke Health Care US, LLC | 1 | $66 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 1 | $30 |
| Bioventus LLC | 1 | $23 |
| Orthofix Medical, Inc. | 1 | $22 |
| Vertex | 1 | $21 |
| Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 1 | $18 |
What the payments were tied to
Products named in the reported payments. Only payments of $100 or more are attributed here — the typical reported payment nationally is a meal worth about $16, and listing those product-by-product would be noise.
How this compares
$41,999 in reported general payments places this provider in the 90th percentile of 437 sports medicine providers in Texas.
Medicare billing
What this is not: this is the amount Original Medicare Part B allowed for services this provider billed in 2024. It is not their income. It excludes Medicare Advantage — now more than half of all Medicare enrollment — along with Medicaid and all commercial insurance, and it is gross practice revenue before staff, rent, supplies and malpractice premiums. CMS also suppresses any figure covering ten or fewer patients, so low-volume providers appear smaller than they are.
Most prescribed under Part D
| Drug | Claims | Cost to plans & patients |
|---|---|---|
| Hydrocodone-AcetaminophenHydrocodone/Acetaminophen | 421 | $4,145 |
| Clindamycin Hcl | 148 | $1,515 |
| Celecoxib | 40 | $1,441 |
| Gabapentin | 152 | $1,375 |
| Ondansetron Hcl | 168 | $1,025 |
| Acetaminophen-CodeineAcetaminophen With Codeine | 73 | $941 |
| Meloxicam | 228 | $736 |
| Tizanidine Hcl | 17 | $717 |
| Methylprednisolone | 56 | $469 |
| Oxycodone Hcl | 49 | $316 |
| Tramadol Hcl | 81 | $300 |
| Oxycodone-AcetaminophenOxycodone Hcl/Acetaminophen | 19 | $295 |
| Cyclobenzaprine Hcl | 32 | $208 |
| Diclofenac Sodium | 13 | $161 |
| Ibuprofen | 39 | $135 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other sports medicine in Sulphur Springs
- Thomas DeberardinoSan Antonio$3.5M
- Robert ScheinbergDallas$2.2M
- Walter LoweHouston$1.4M
- Reed BartzSunnyvale$1.2M
- James GregoryHouston$565K
- John McDonaldAustin$499K
- James McKinleyTyler$305K
- Kelechi OkorohaDallas$297K
- Leon PaulosPearland$289K
- Marc LabbeThe Woodlands$238K
Where these figures come from
- Payments: CMS Open Payments, program years 2019–2025 (publication P06302026_06032026).
- Billing: Medicare Physician & Other Practitioners, data year 2024. Original Medicare Part B only.
- Identity: NPPES NPI Registry, July 2026.