BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C
Physician Assistant in ROCK HILL, South Carolina. CMS National Plan and Provider Enumeration System profile including specialty classification, practice address, and Medicare prescribing data when reported.
What the federal data shows
BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C filed 2,312 Medicare Part D claims in 2023 as a Physician Assistant in ROCK HILL, South Carolina, prescribing 91% generic.
- 2K
- Part D claims, 2023
- 91%
- generic prescribing
- $5.2K
- industry payments (Sunshine Act)
Every figure on this page comes straight from federal CMS records (NPPES, Medicare Part D, MIPS, Open Payments) — no proprietary rating or editorial opinion is applied.
BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C's Medicare Part D volume vs every U.S. prescriber
Total Medicare Part D claims, 2023 — across all CMS prescribers nationally
2,312 Top 14% higher than 86% of 1,370,886 prescribers
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more prescribers. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source CMS Medicare Part D Prescriber Public Use File · 2023
What does the federal data show about BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C?
Quality data not reportedPrimary specialty
Medicare Part D claims
Specialty distribution in South Carolina
How Physician Assistant compares to other specialties among South Carolina providers
Physician Assistant share within South Carolina
Physician Assistant is one of the more visible NUCC categories in South Carolina
Each bar reflects the share of in-state providers whose primary NUCC taxonomy matches the specialty. Long tail of ~690 NUCC codes folded into "Other" to keep the comparison legible.
Specialty board-certification context
Estimated specialty board-certified rate — Physician Assistant (ABMS / AOA reference)
- Est. board-certified rate
- 78%
- Physician Assistant ABMS/AOA estimate
Est. board-certified rate (Physician Assistant) — ABMS / AOA estimate
Verify credentials
- Verify via ABMS free public lookup
- Verify via AOA osteopathic boards
- Specialty volume Physician Assistant US NPIs
Specialty board-certified rate — Physician Assistant estimate
Board certification through an ABMS or AOA member board signals voluntary post-licensure examination plus Maintenance of Certification cycles. CMS does not publish a per-provider board-certification field; the figure shown is the specialty-level estimated rate from ABMS / AOA reference data.
The Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) scores providers 0–100 across four performance categories: Quality, Cost, Promoting Interoperability, and Improvement Activities, weighted under 42 CFR §414.1380. Reporting is voluntary for many small practices, so absence of a MIPS score is not a quality signal.
Board certification through an ABMS or AOA member board signals voluntary post-licensure examination plus continuous Maintenance of Certification cycles. Verify any individual provider's status through certificationmatters.org (ABMS) or osteopathic.org (AOA).
BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C appears in the CMS NPPES registry as a Physician Assistant provider holding PA-C credentials at 1656 RIVERCHASE BLVD STE 3200, ROCK HILL, SC, 29732, with a listed phone of (704) 468-0101. NPI 1194234468 was issued on 09/29/2017. Because NPPES data is self-reported by the provider and refreshed monthly, the address, phone, and specialty reflect what COLSTON most recently submitted to CMS rather than a vetted directory listing, which is why patients should always confirm the practice is still at this location before scheduling.
Medicare Part D records for calendar year 2023 show 2,312 prescription claims written by this provider, covering 315 Medicare beneficiaries and totaling roughly $544K in drug spend, split 9% brand-name and 91% generic by claim count. These figures capture only Medicare Part D — commercial insurance, Medicaid, and cash-pay prescriptions are not included, and any drug-beneficiary cell under 11 is suppressed by CMS for patient privacy.
Physician Assistant is a high-volume specialty nationwide, with 149,975 enrolled providers across 56 states and an average of 790 Part D claims per prescriber, so the context for interpreting these metrics differs meaningfully from a primary-care baseline. Important: PlainDoctor is a directory of publicly available government data, not medical advice, a malpractice database, or a quality rating. Inclusion here does not imply a recommendation, and absence of complaints or sanctions on this page does not mean none exist — always verify credentials through the NPPES NPI Registry, your state medical board, and the ABMS or AOA before making healthcare decisions.
Practice Address
Provider Details
| NPI | 1194234468 |
|---|---|
| Specialty | Physician Assistant |
| Credentials | PA-C |
| Gender | Male |
| NPI Issued | 09/29/2017 |
Verify this provider's license
PlainDoctor pulls this profile from the CMS NPPES public registry. Confirm BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C's current license status, disciplinary history, and board certifications with the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners in South Carolina before relying on this page for a clinical or care decision.
How we sourced this profile
Hospital and facility affiliations
Facilities where BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C bills Medicare from. Star ratings (1-5) are CMS Hospital Compare's "Hospital overall rating" — a composite of mortality, readmission, patient experience, safety, timely care, and efficient use of medical imaging measures. Source: CMS Care Compare.
Affiliations sourced from CMS Doctors and Clinicians National Downloadable File; hospital ratings from CMS Hospital General Information dataset (cross-referenced by facility name + state).
Industry payments received (2024) — CMS Open Payments transparency data
The federal Physician Payments Sunshine Act (part of the Affordable Care Act) requires drug and medical-device manufacturers + group purchasing organizations to publicly report payments and other transfers of value to physicians and teaching hospitals. The data below covers 2024 for BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C. Source: openpaymentsdata.cms.gov.
Total received
$5.2K
Largest payer
ABBVIE INC.
Most common payment type
Food and Beverage
Industry payments are not necessarily indicators of bias — they include research funding, consulting fees for evidence-based work, royalties for inventions, food at conferences, and similar items. The disclosure exists for transparency. Read our methodology for how we interpret this data.
Brand vs generic prescribing mix · Generic-heavy
9% brand-name claims vs 91% generic, on 2,312 2023 Medicare Part D claims.
The federal Medicare Part D Generic Dispensing Rate national benchmark sits near 90% generic / 10% brand for primary-care prescribers, per CMS Office of the Actuary 2024 estimates. Higher brand share is common in specialty prescribing where generic equivalents are not available.
Medicare Part D Prescribing Data
CMS Medicare Part D prescriber-level data for calendar year 2023.
Prescribing Breakdown
- 30-Day Fills
- 3,341
- Total Day Supply
- 98,046
- Brand vs Generic
- 9% brand / 91% generic
- Brand Drug Cost
- $475K
- Generic Drug Cost
- $69K
Patient Demographics
- Average Patient Age
- 72.5 years
- Avg HCC Risk Score
- 1.60
- Gender Split
- 66% female / 34% male
- Age Distribution
- <65: 52, 65-74: 113, 75-84: 116, 85+: 34
Top Prescribed Drugs (Medicare Part D)
Top drugs by claim count for calendar year 2023. Based on Medicare Part D data only.
What BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C prescribes most
Top Medicare Part D drugs by claim count, 2023
- Gabapentin
Gabapentin
258 claims
- Donepezil Hcl
Donepezil Hcl
253 claims
- Carbidopa-Levodopa
Carbidopa-Levodopa
225 claims
- Memantine Hcl
Memantine Hcl
217 claims
- Primidone
Primidone
105 claims
- Tizanidine Hcl 85
Tizanidine Hcl
85 claims
- Levetiracetam 81
Levetiracetam
81 claims
- Pregabalin 72
Pregabalin
72 claims
| Drug | Claims |
|---|---|
| Gabapentin | 258 |
| Donepezil Hcl | 253 |
| Carbidopa-Levodopa Carbidopa/Levodopa | 225 |
| Memantine Hcl | 217 |
| Primidone | 105 |
| Tizanidine Hcl | 85 |
| Levetiracetam | 81 |
| Pregabalin | 72 |
| Quetiapine Fumarate | 72 |
| Duloxetine Hcl | 65 |
* Counts below 11 are suppressed by CMS for patient privacy. Generic names shown where available from CMS Part D data.
Physician Assistant Overview
How BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C fits within the Physician Assistant landscape nationally.
BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C's 2,312 claims are above the specialty average of 790.
Nearby Physician Assistant Providers in South Carolina
Other clinicians with the same primary specialty enrolled in South Carolina, drawn from the same CMS NPPES roster as COLSTON.
Compare Physician Assistant nationally: see state-by-state distribution →
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Frequently Asked Questions
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Does BENJAMIN COLSTON, PA-C prescribe more brand-name or generic drugs? ▼
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Data Sources
- Provider Directory
- CMS National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES), download.cms.gov/nppes, updated monthly. Contains NPI, specialty, credentials, and practice location.
- Specialty Classification
- NUCC Health Care Provider Taxonomy (nucc.org), the industry standard for classifying provider specialties in Medicare and Medicaid billing.
- Prescribing Data
- CMS Medicare Part D Prescriber Public Use File (2023). Includes claims, drug costs, beneficiaries, and opioid prescribing rates.
- Limitations
- Provider data is self-reported to CMS. Prescribing data reflects Medicare Part D only and does not include commercial insurance, Medicaid, or cash prescriptions. Claims below 11 beneficiaries are suppressed by CMS for privacy.
See our complete data methodology for details on how we collect and process government data.
Data as of April 2026 (NPPES) / 2023 (Medicare Part D). Source: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
Disclaimer: Data from CMS NPPES and Medicare Part D. PlainDoctor does not rate or rank providers. Provider information is self-reported and may not be current. Always verify information directly with the provider. About · Methodology