NPI registry status
Active
2026 NPPES data Nephrology Physician NPI 1730354002 M.D.
Verify on CMS → Willie Hester, M.D.
Nephrology Physician in Rutherfordton, North Carolina.
This profile is drawn from the federal National Provider Identifier Registry (CMS NPPES), which lists more than 7 million U.S. healthcare providers - including 10,806 in Nephrology Physician, and covers specialty classification, practice address, and Medicare Part D prescribing data when reported. According to CMS, every field reflects the provider's official federal registration, see our methodology.
Federal data, no proprietary rating.
We show these CMS records as-is - no composite score, no star rating, no editorial opinion layered on top.
Prescribing volume
609
Medicare Part D claims · 91 beneficiaries · Nephrology Physician avg: 2K
What the federal data shows
Willie Hester, M.D. filed 609 Medicare Part D claims in 2024 as a Nephrology Physician in Rutherfordton, North Carolina.
- 609
- Part D claims, 2024
- Likely
- board-certified (heuristic)
- ≥68th
- pct by Part D claim volume (lower-bound band)
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.
Federal trust snapshot
What official records show about Willie Hester, M.D.
Federal records show an active NPI with Medicare Part D prescribing activity — verifiable registry data, not a proprietary rating.
- Verified
NPI registry status
Active listing in the CMS National Provider Identifier Registry (NPI 1730354002), first enumerated 04/28/2008.
Source: CMS NPPES
- Reported
Medicare Part D participation
Filed 609 Medicare Part D prescription claims in the 2023 CMS public use file — indicates active Medicare prescribing participation.
Source: CMS Part D Prescriber PUF
- Reported
Board certification signal
Heuristic suggests board-certified status based on ABMS-eligible specialty taxonomy plus active CMS participation signals — not a direct ABMS verification.
- Reported
Hospital affiliations
1 CMS Care Compare hospital affiliation on record — practice footprint from the Doctors and Clinicians file.
Source: CMS Care Compare
- Not in federal data
Individual sanction lookup
PlainDoctor does not publish per-provider disciplinary determinations. Confirm current license and any individual actions through the state medical board or FSMB verification service.
Source: State medical board / FSMB
This trust snapshot summarizes only what appears in federal CMS/NPPES public records. It is not a composite score, star rating, patient review, or clinical recommendation. PlainDoctor never fabricates reviews or AggregateRating schema.
CMS NPPES provider registry desk
NPI 1730354002 · Nephrology Physician
NPI-10 · ENUM-MID · TAX-MID · RX-LIGHT · BOOK-THIN · PHOTO-ENUM
- NPI-10 1730354002
- ENUM-MID 2008
- TAX-MID 11K Nephrology Physician
- RX-LIGHT 609
- BOOK-THIN 338 in North Carolina
- PHOTO-ENUM Karthik Ramani · 2008
Willie Hester, M.D.'s Medicare Part D volume vs every U.S. prescriber
Total Medicare Part D claims, 2024, across all CMS prescribers nationally
609 ≥ 68th percentile 68% of 1,416,883 prescribers are in lower value bands
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.
The percentile is a conservative 100-claim band: it counts only prescribers in lower claim-volume bands. Medicare Part D claim volume is activity context, not a quality measure or recommendation. See methodology § corpus placement.
Source CMS Medicare Part D Prescriber Public Use File · 2024
✓
Board certification likely (heuristic, not verified)
Willie Hester, M.D. practices in an ABMS-board-eligible specialty and shows active CMS Medicare participation + 1 hospital affiliation - signals consistent with board-certified status. For verified board certification, see CertificationMatters.org (the official ABMS public lookup).
What does the federal data show about Willie Hester, M.D.?
Quality data not reportedPrimary specialty
Nephrology Physician
Medicare Part D claims
609 60% vs specialty avg
Specialty distribution in North Carolina
How Nephrology Physician compares to other specialties among North Carolina providers
Board certification
Not published by CMS
CMS does not publish a per-provider board-certification field in NPPES. PlainDoctor does not have a reliable per-specialty certification rate to show for Nephrology Physician. Verify directly:
How MIPS and board certification work
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).
Practice Address
Provider Details
| NPI | 1730354002 |
|---|---|
| Specialty | Nephrology Physician |
| Credentials | M.D. |
| Gender | Male |
| NPI Issued | 04/28/2008 |
Hospital and facility affiliations
Facilities where Willie Hester, M.D. 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.
Hospital Physician Services - Southeast Professional Corporation
Rutherfordton, NC
Affiliations sourced from CMS Doctors and Clinicians National Downloadable File; hospital ratings from CMS Hospital General Information dataset (cross-referenced by facility name + state).
Medicare Part D Prescribing Data
CMS Medicare Part D prescriber-level data for calendar year 2024.
609
Total Claims
$59K
Total Drug Cost
91
Medicare Beneficiaries
Prescribing Breakdown
- 30-Day Fills
- 675.933
- Total Day Supply
- 13,947
- Generic Drug Cost
- $6K
- Antibiotic Claims
- 52
Patient Demographics
- Average Patient Age
- 75.1 years
- Avg HCC Risk Score
- 2.30
- Gender Split
- 67% female / 33% male
- Age Distribution
- <65: 15, 65-74: 24, 75-84: 32, 85+: 20
Top Prescribed Drugs (Medicare Part D)
Top drugs by claim count for calendar year 2024. Based on Medicare Part D data only.
What Willie Hester, M.D. prescribes most
Top Medicare Part D drugs by claim count, 2024
- Eliquis
Eliquis
50 claims
- Levothyroxine Sodium
Levothyroxine Sodium
47 claims
- Sertraline Hcl
Sertraline Hcl
31 claims
- Amlodipine Besylate
Amlodipine Besylate
26 claims
- Pantoprazole Sodium
Pantoprazole Sodium
25 claims
- Clopidogrel 15
Clopidogrel
15 claims
- Epidiolex 15
Epidiolex
15 claims
- Metoprolol Succinate 15
Metoprolol Succinate
15 claims
| Drug | Claims |
|---|---|
| Eliquis Apixaban | 50 |
| Levothyroxine Sodium | 47 |
| Sertraline Hcl | 31 |
| Amlodipine Besylate | 26 |
| Pantoprazole Sodium | 25 |
| Clopidogrel Clopidogrel Bisulfate | 15 |
| Epidiolex Cannabidiol (Cbd) | 15 |
| Metoprolol Succinate | 15 |
| Rybelsus Semaglutide | 14 |
| Furosemide | 13 |
* Counts below 11 are suppressed by CMS for patient privacy. Generic names shown where available from CMS Part D data.
Nephrology Physician Overview
How Willie Hester, M.D. fits within the Nephrology Physician landscape nationally.
10,806
Nephrology Physician Providers in US
55
States with Nephrology Physician
1,511
Avg Claims per Provider
Willie Hester, M.D.'s 609 claims are below the specialty average of 1,511.
Nationwide Nephrology Physician peers with similar MIPS or enrollment year
Two federal-record peer sets for Hester, both outside North Carolina so the neighborhoods are not geographic containment.
Same NPPES enumeration year (2008)
Same-specialty clinicians who entered the NPI registry in the same calendar year, outside this state.
Nearby Nephrology Physician Providers in North Carolina
Other clinicians with the same primary specialty enrolled in North Carolina, drawn from the same CMS NPPES roster as Hester.
One of 338 Nephrology Physician providers enrolled in North Carolina, 5 are shown here.
Dr. Sosan Abdullah
MD
Morganton, NC
Dr. Tariq Abo-Kamil
MD
Henderson, NC
Dr. Moses Aboagye-Kumi
M.D.
Fayetteville, NC
Dr. Maureen Achuko
M.D.
Fayetteville, NC
Dr. Patricia Adams
MD
Winston Salem, NC
Compare Nephrology Physician nationally: see state-by-state distribution →
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Willie Hester, M.D.'s specialty? ▼
Willie Hester, M.D. specializes in Nephrology Physician and practices in Rutherfordton, North Carolina. Credentials: M.D..
How much does Willie Hester, M.D. prescribe under Medicare Part D? ▼
In 2024, Willie Hester, M.D. wrote 609 Medicare Part D claims totaling $59K in drug costs for 91 beneficiaries.
Where is Willie Hester, M.D. located? ▼
Willie Hester, M.D. is located at 288 S RIDGECREST AVE, Rutherfordton, NC, 28139. Phone: (828) 286-5000.
What is Willie Hester, M.D.'s NPI number? ▼
Willie Hester, M.D.'s National Provider Identifier (NPI) is 1730354002, issued on 04/28/2008.
How many Nephrology Physician providers are there in the US? ▼
There are 10,806 Nephrology Physician providers across 55 states in the US. The average Nephrology Physician provider writes 1,511 Medicare Part D claims per year.
What drugs does Willie Hester, M.D. prescribe most often? ▼
Based on 2024 Medicare Part D data, Willie Hester, M.D.'s most frequently prescribed drugs include Eliquis, Levothyroxine Sodium, Sertraline Hcl. This reflects Medicare Part D prescriptions only and does not include commercial insurance or other payer types.
Does Willie Hester, M.D. accept Medicare? ▼
Willie Hester, M.D. appears in CMS Medicare data with 609 Part D claims and 91 Medicare beneficiaries in 2024. Contact the provider's office directly to confirm current Medicare enrollment and accepted plans.
How can I verify Willie Hester, M.D.'s credentials? ▼
Willie Hester, M.D.'s NPI is 1730354002 with credentials M.D.. You can verify this through the NPPES NPI Registry, check state medical board records, and confirm board certification through the ABMS or AOA.
Data Sources
View source datasets and methodology notes
- 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 (2024). 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 August 2026 (NPPES) / 2024 (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
Every figure on PlainDoctor is rendered directly from the federal CMS NPPES registry, Medicare Part D, MIPS, and Open Payments records, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.