James Frix, MD
Sports Medicine · Dalton, GANPI 1396838363
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — travel and lodging (37.8%), education and food and beverage — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. 31 manufacturers reported payments, led by Arthrex at 32.6% of the total.
Across 161 payments — averaging $119.72 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Arthrex$6K
- Alpha Orthopedic Systems$5K
- Smoky Mountain Surgical LLC$3K
- Stryker$2K
- Linvatec Corporation$305
- Zimmer Biomet$301
- plus $2K from 25 others
What the payments were for
- Travel & lodging$7,29338%
- Food & beverage$5,49729%
- Education$6,48634%
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 | 36 | $6,288 |
| Alpha Orthopedic Systems | 12 | $5,137 |
| Smoky Mountain Surgical LLC | 17 | $3,352 |
| Stryker | 32 | $2,053 |
| Linvatec Corporation | 5 | $305 |
| Zimmer Biomet | 5 | $301 |
| Radius Health, Inc. | 6 | $254 |
| Johnson & Johnson(2 entities) | 10 | $240 |
| Osteoremedies, LLC | 1 | $229 |
| Amgen | 7 | $198 |
| Smith+Nephew | 4 | $170 |
| Innovation Technologies Inc | 1 | $150 |
| Team 1, LLC | 1 | $143 |
| Bioventus LLC | 2 | $62 |
| Pacira Therapeutics, Inc. | 3 | $60 |
| Pacira Pharmaceuticals Incorporated | 3 | $59 |
| Vertex | 1 | $32 |
| Molnlycke Health Care US, LLC | 1 | $27 |
| Shoulder Innovations, Inc. | 1 | $25 |
| Nalu Medical, Inc. | 1 | $24 |
| Vericel Corporation | 2 | $23 |
| Medtronic | 1 | $18 |
| AstraZeneca | 1 | $17 |
| AbbVie | 1 | $17 |
| KCI USA, Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| Avanos Medical | 1 | $15 |
| Olympus America Inc. | 1 | $13 |
| Paragon 28, Inc. | 1 | $13 |
| Convatec Inc. | 1 | $13 |
| ERMI LLC | 1 | $13 |
| Orthofix Medical, Inc. | 1 | $10 |
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
$19,275 in reported general payments places this provider in the 85th percentile of 168 sports medicine providers in Georgia.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| ProliaDenosumab | 60 | $102,694 |
| Teriparatide | 22 | $51,190 |
| Celecoxib | 124 | $3,420 |
| Diclofenac Sodium | 94 | $1,243 |
| Hydrocodone-AcetaminophenHydrocodone/Acetaminophen | 63 | $488 |
| Meloxicam | 193 | $461 |
| Cephalexin | 104 | $450 |
| Oxycodone Hcl | 74 | $430 |
| Gabapentin | 46 | $415 |
| Tramadol Hcl | 92 | $387 |
| Alendronate Sodium | 48 | $290 |
| Oxycodone-AcetaminophenOxycodone Hcl/Acetaminophen | 27 | $238 |
| Methylprednisolone | 35 | $198 |
| Ondansetron OdtOndansetron | 11 | $147 |
| Ibuprofen | 13 | $116 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Companies that both paid and supply prescribed drugs
These companies both reported payments to this provider and make drugs the provider prescribed under Medicare Part D in 2024. For most specialties this overlap is expected — a cardiologist who is paid by a cardiology drugmaker also treats heart disease. It is shown so the reader can see it, not because it implies anything on its own.
| Company | Paid to this provider | Part D cost of their drugs |
|---|---|---|
| AmgenProlia | $198 | $102,69460 claims |
Reading this fairly. The Part D column is what drug plans and patients paid pharmacies — this provider received none of it, and it reflects how many patients they treat and what those drugs cost. Against peers, this provider's reported payments sit in the 85th percentile of 168 sports medicine providers in Georgia.
Other sports medicine in Dalton
- John XerogeanesAtlanta$4M
- Joseph BurnsAlpharetta$376K
- Sameh LabibBrookhaven$280K
- Spero KarasAtlanta$137K
- Xavier DuraldeAtlanta$77K
- Thomas MyersAtlanta$72K
- Robert O'ConnellCarrollton$69K
- Elan GolanSnellville$57K
- Taylor PolanderJesup$48K
- Anthony CantrellCanton$47K
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.