The Top 20 Knee Replacement Surgeons in the U.S.

By Phil Denniston, President, Denniston Data Inc.
4/12/21

Knee replacement surgeries are in the top ten among the most common inpatient surgeries in the U.S. Also known as total knee arthroplasty (TKA), these procedures are performed to treat degenerative joint diseases. About 600,000 TKAs were performed in 2018 in the U.S., and about 500,000 of those were covered by Medicare. The overall mean age of patients was 67 years.

Who are the Top Knee Replacement Surgeons in the United States based on Experience? This ranking below shows the top doctors in the United States based on the number of knee replacements they performed. Research has shown that doctor case volume and experience is positively correlated with better patient outcomes. The case volume data below is based on analysis of anonymized Medicare claims data. In 2018, 11,299 surgeons in the U.S. performed at least 11 knee replacements that were approved and paid for using HCPCS code 27447. These were the top 20 surgeons:

U.S. Ranking of Providers for HCPCS Code: 27447, "Repair of knee joint [arthroplasty]" Year: 2018, Location: Facility
Rank	NPI Code	Provider Name	City State Zip	Services	Patients	Repeat	Total Dollars Approved	Approved Average	Billed Average
1	1699730689	Kenneth A Martin, MD	Little Rock, AR 72205-	468	451	3.76%	$599,976	$1,282.00	$4,211.97
2	1093700965	Vuong B Nguyen, MD	Orlando, FL 32819-	412	372	10.75%	$590,577	$1,433.44	$4,868.26
3	1255314522	Kirk A Kindsfater, MD	Fort Collins, CO 80525-	378	371	1.88%	$614,031	$1,624.42	$5,685.28
4	1396786901	John T Dearborn, MD	Fremont, CA 94538-	338	335	0.89%	$549,507	$1,625.76	$10,464.50
5	1497805295	Martin W Roche, MD	Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33308-	329	313	5.11%	$505,722	$1,537.15	$4,029.37
6	1992701999	William T Ballard, M.D.	Chattanooga, TN 37404-	317	298	6.37%	$409,440	$1,291.61	$5,730.46
7	1619139474	Rowland M Roberson, MD	Tupelo, MS 38801-	316	301	4.98%	$393,954	$1,246.69	$3,968.18
8	1558320291	Paul R Greenlaw, MD	New Bern, NC 28562-	316	254	24.40%	$419,740	$1,328.29	$6,082.00
9	1003966359	Alexander P Sah, MD	Fremont, CA 94536-	306	282	8.51%	$478,076	$1,562.34	$9,058.82
10	1083674410	Andrew G Yun, MD	Santa Monica, CA 90404-	302	291	3.78%	$434,460	$1,438.61	$4,099.00
11	1417049693	Rick W Bassett, M.D.	Harlingen, TX 78550-	291	270	7.77%	$380,171	$1,306.43	$5,662.00
12	1770545253	Yogesh Mittal, MD	Tulsa, OK 74104-	288	261	10.34%	$387,403	$1,345.15	$3,545.46
13	1396831129	Robert Goldman	Morristown, NJ 07962-	285	278	2.51%	$471,481	$1,654.32	$10,781.75
14	1306890512	Fabio R Orozco, M.D.	Egg Harbor Township, NJ 08234	285	279	2.15%	$428,042	$1,501.90	$6,631.05
15	1114184058	Denis Nam, M.D., M.SC.	Chicago, IL 60612-	283	256	10.54%	$432,342	$1,527.71	$13,435.70
16	1639185978	Edward T Humbert, DO	Fort Myers, FL 33907-	281	268	4.85%	$429,576	$1,528.74	$1,593.15
17	1871532572	Scott D Schoifet, M.D.	Voorhees, NJ 08043-	274	256	7.03%	$405,824	$1,481.11	$6,800.00
18	1972697704	Stephen M Howell, M.D.	Sacramento, CA 95823-	269	249	8.03%	$363,876	$1,352.70	$3,051.00
19	1396702452	James E Jennings, M.D.	Greenville, SC 29615-	266	245	8.57%	$345,337	$1,298.26	$3,356.00
20	1700825411	Howard J Kapp, MD	Naples, FL 34102-	264	257	2.72%	$417,043	$1,579.71	$4,973.00

scroll to right to see all data

Overall, Dr. Kenneth Martin was the highest-ranking doctor in the most recent year available, 2018, but what about for the last several years? The first year that this data was available from Medicare is 2012, so let us look at the data for all years combined, 2012 through 2018, for the top 8 doctors only.

U.S. Ranking of Providers for HCPCS Code: 27447, "Repair of knee joint [arthroplasty]" Years: From 2012 to 2018 (7 years), Location: Facility
Rank	NPI Code	Provider Name	City State Zip	Services	Patients	Repeat	Total Dollars Approved	Approved Average	Billed Average
1	1699730689	Kenneth Martin, MD	Little Rock, AR 72205	3,425	2,894	18.34%	$3,924,273	$1,145.77	$3,734.51
2	1396786901	John Dearborn, MD	Fremont, CA 94538	2,850	2,325	22.58%	$4,023,271	$1,411.67	$8,968.42
3	1417049693	Rick Bassett, M.D.	Harlingen, TX 78550	2,832	2,044	38.55%	$3,235,511	$1,142.48	$4,794.31
4	1255314522	Kirk Kindsfater, MD	Fort Collins, CO 80525	2,689	2,362	13.84%	$4,053,194	$1,507.32	$5,161.64
5	1477517233	Richard Heekin, MD	Jacksonville, FL 32204	2,654	2,010	32.03%	$3,400,852	$1,281.41	$3,872.55
6	1093700965	Vuong Nguyen, MD	Orlando, FL 32819	2,650	2,290	15.72%	$3,658,709	$1,380.64	$4,639.32
7	1639185978	Edward Humbert, DO	Fort Myers, FL 33907	2,576	2,154	19.59%	$3,561,899	$1,382.72	$1,548.58
8	1871532572	Scott Schoifet, M.D.	Voorhees, NJ 08043	2,501	2,049	22.05%	$3,425,909	$1,369.82	$6,083.02

scroll to right to see all data

Dr. Martin is still the highest-ranking physician in the U.S. Let us look at trends to see if any other doctors seem to be gaining on Dr. Martin. The graph at the top of the post shows that Dr. Vuong Nguyen has been growing quickly. Overall, he is sixth for the 7 years combined, but he started low in 2012, and he has exceeded or come close to Dr. Martin in volume during recent years.

Denniston Data’s Health Insights from Provider Ranking System™ (PRS) are developed with data from the PRS platform. Want even more insights? In addition to national data, rankings are also available for every local area in the U.S., for every service provided and reimbursed by Medicare. Start a Free Trial now and get access to the highest quality data and intelligence on healthcare providers. Explore These Claims.