Ali Safavi, MD
Thoracic Surgery (Cardiothoracic Vascular Surgery) · New York, NYNPI 1295728772
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by food and beverage: $1,702 of the $2,033 with a category attached, or 83.7%. 9 manufacturers reported payments, led by Biotronik Inc. at 48.9% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $560 and has fallen 57.9% since, to $236 in 2025. That places this record below the midpoint for thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) clinicians in NY, where the typical reported total is $3,409.
Across 34 payments — averaging $59.79 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Biotronik Inc.$993
- Boston Scientific$292
- Medline Industries LP$253
- Intuitive Surgical$174
- Medtronic$123
- CSL Behring$80
- plus $116 from 3 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$171%
- Travel & lodging$1477%
- Food & beverage$1,70284%
- Education$1678%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Biotronik Inc. | 17 | $993 |
| Boston Scientific | 4 | $292 |
| Medline Industries LP | 2 | $253 |
| Intuitive Surgical | 3 | $174 |
| Medtronic | 1 | $123 |
| CSL Behring | 3 | $80 |
| KCI USA, Inc. | 2 | $64 |
| Mallinckrodt Hospital Products Inc. | 1 | $34 |
| Z-medica, LLC | 1 | $17 |
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.
- BioMonitor$441
- Edora$268
- Solia$268
- Acticor$268
- Rivacor$268
- Hyalomatrix Wound Device$253
- PluroGel Burn & Wound Dressings$253
- Acticor 7 VR-T DX$173
- Edora 8 DR-T$173
- Rivacor 7 DR-T$173
- Da Vinci Surgical System$147
- ACCOLADE SR$145
- Micra$123
How this compares
$2,033 in reported general payments places this provider in the 35th percentile of 383 thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) providers in New York.
See all thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) providers in New York →
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.
Other thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) in New York
- Aubrey GallowayNew York$5.7M
- Gilbert TangNew York$842K
- Michael ZervosNew York$811K
- Elias ZiasNew York$465K
- Isaac GeorgeNew York$395K
- Eugene GrossiNew York$350K
- Costas BizekisNew York$321K
- Brendon StilesNew York$314K
- Daniela MolenaNew York$221K
- Arnar GeirssonNew York$218K
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.