Albert Vargas, MD
Surgery · Sandusky, OHNPI 1861466864
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 98.2% of the total across 37 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 26 manufacturers reported payments, led by Biotissue Holdings Inc. at 33.4% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2024 at $575 and has fallen 89.4% since, to $61 in 2025. That places this record below the midpoint for surgery clinicians in OH, where the typical reported total is $1,531.
Across 37 payments — averaging $32.51 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Biotissue Holdings Inc.$402
- Johnson & Johnson$141
- Teleflex LLC$93
- Integra Lifesciences Corporation$78
- Sirius Medical Systems$51
- KARL Storz Endoscopy-america$46
- plus $391 from 20 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$212%
- Food & beverage$1,18198%
Most of this is food and beverage — typically meals provided during product presentations at a clinic or hospital. Nationally that is the single largest category of reported payments by count.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Biotissue Holdings Inc. | 2 | $402 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 7 | $141 |
| Teleflex LLC | 1 | $93 |
| Integra Lifesciences Corporation | 3 | $78 |
| Sirius Medical Systems | 1 | $51 |
| KARL Storz Endoscopy-america | 1 | $46 |
| KCI USA, Inc. | 2 | $36 |
| Smith+Nephew | 1 | $33 |
| AbbVie | 2 | $31 |
| Aroa Biosurgery Incorporated | 1 | $29 |
| Medtronic | 1 | $24 |
| Merck | 1 | $22 |
| Z-medica, LLC | 1 | $21 |
| Genentech USA, Inc. | 1 | $20 |
| Vertex | 1 | $19 |
| Pacira Pharmaceuticals Incorporated | 1 | $16 |
| Elucent Medical | 1 | $16 |
| Acelrx Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| Hologic Inc | 1 | $15 |
| ZOLL Services LLC (a/k/a ZOLL Lifecor Corp) | 1 | $15 |
| Angiodynamics, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
| Covidien LP | 1 | $14 |
| Avanos Medical | 1 | $14 |
| Convatec Inc. | 1 | $13 |
| Medline Industries LP | 1 | $12 |
| Davol Inc. | 1 | $11 |
How this compares
$1,203 in reported general payments places this provider in the 45th percentile of 988 surgery providers in Ohio.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Hydrocodone-AcetaminophenHydrocodone/Acetaminophen | 116 | $387 |
| Oxycodone-AcetaminophenOxycodone Hcl/Acetaminophen | 42 | $152 |
| Amoxicillin-Clavulanate PotassAmoxicillin/Potassium Clav | 12 | $92 |
| Sulfamethoxazole-TrimethoprimSulfamethoxazole/Trimethoprim | 11 | $44 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other surgery in Sandusky
- Jonathan ThompsonWest Chester$2.1M
- Raymond OndersCleveland$1.2M
- Neilendu KunduCleveland$808K
- Michael MearaColumbus$808K
- Chase WehrleCleveland$741K
- Craig JarrettCleveland$622K
- Greg StarleyCuyahoga Falls$594K
- Ihya GorgunCleveland$527K
- Marshall SpaldingColumbus$450K
- Jason ShoemakerDublin$344K
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.