Gary Stapleton
Pediatric Cardiology · Houston, TXNPI 1447477385
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by consulting fees: $76,990 of the $93,531 with a category attached, or 82.3%. Edwards Lifesciences accounts for 79.5% of it on its own, with 9 other manufacturers making up the rest. Reporting peaked in 2023 at $47,168 and has fallen 98.8% since, to $550 in 2025. Among pediatric cardiology clinicians in TX with any reported payments, this total sits in the top 5% — high for the specialty, which is a reason to read the composition above rather than the number alone.
Across 148 payments — averaging $631.97 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Edwards Lifesciences$74K
- W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.$9K
- Abbott$7K
- Medtronic$3K
- Terumo Medical Corporation$196
- Biosense Webster, Inc.$55
- plus $87 from 4 others
Across 14 payments — averaging $6661.56 each. Payments tied to a research study. These frequently flow through the physician to a hospital or research institution rather than to the physician personally.
- Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc.$63K
- Edwards Lifesciences$31K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$76,99082%
- Travel & lodging$10,92112%
- Food & beverage$5,6216%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Edwards Lifesciences | 85 | $74,375 |
| W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc. | 15 | $9,144 |
| Abbott | 8 | $6,566 |
| Medtronic(2 entities) | 31 | $3,109 |
| Terumo Medical Corporation | 2 | $196 |
| Biosense Webster, Inc. | 3 | $55 |
| Cardiva Medical, Inc. | 1 | $31 |
| Balt USA, LLC | 1 | $23 |
| KARL Storz Endoscopy-america | 1 | $18 |
| Abiomed | 1 | $16 |
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.
- Edwards SAPIEN 3 Transcatheter Heart Valve$70,418
- GORE CARDIOFORM ASD Occluder$8,040
- AMPLATZER AMULET$5,000
- THE EDWARDS SAPIEN 3 VALVE WITH ALTERRA ADAPTIVE PRESTENT SYSTEM$2,214
- AMPLATZER PICCOLO$1,292
- HARMONY$1,063
- GORE CARDIOFORM Septal Occluder$710
- MELODY TPV$638
- Melody$338
- CARDIOFORM Septal Occluder$140
- Optitorque$140
- Heartrail$140
- Azur CX Detachable$140
- TR Band$140
- ANGIO-SEAL$140
- AMPLATZER Occluders$111
How this compares
$93,531 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 244 pediatric cardiology providers in Texas.
Other pediatric cardiology in Houston
- Charles MullinsHouston$180K
- Taylor HowardHouston$30K
- Kiran MallulaHouston$11K
- Matthew BrownHouston$8K
- Joseph SpinnerHouston$8K
- Shaine MorrisHouston$7K
- Donna GoffHouston$7K
- Chandramouleeswaran SrinivasanHouston$6K
- Muhammad KhanHouston$6K
- Mohammed NumanHouston$5K
Where these figures come from
- Payments: CMS Open Payments, program years 2019–2025 (publication P06302026_06032026).
- Identity: NPPES NPI Registry, July 2026.