Bal Bhandari, MD
Gastroenterology · Bastrop, LANPI 1063473494
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 97.5% of the total across 466 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 28 manufacturers reported payments, led by AbbVie at 24.6% of the total. 2025 is the largest year on record at $1,239, 2.1 times the $586 reported in 2019.
Across 466 payments — averaging $13.94 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- AbbVie$2K
- Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC$1K
- Johnson & Johnson$659
- Ardelyx, Inc.$342
- Nestle Healthcare Nutrition Inc.$332
- Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc.$331
- plus $2K from 22 others
Across 1,027 payments — averaging $6233.43 each. Payments tied to a research study. These frequently flow through the physician to a hospital or research institution rather than to the physician personally.
- Eli Lilly$2M
- Madrigal Pharmaceuticals$1.2M
- Gilead$686K
- Boehringer Ingelheim International GmbH$623K
- Boehringer Ingelheim$442K
- AbbVie$414K
- plus $1.1M from 8 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$6,33297%
- Education$1242%
- Gifts$411%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AbbVie | 133 | $1,596 |
| Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC | 88 | $1,101 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 34 | $659 |
| Ardelyx, Inc. | 17 | $342 |
| Nestle Healthcare Nutrition Inc. | 22 | $332 |
| Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. | 31 | $331 |
| Gilead | 26 | $328 |
| Merck | 18 | $261 |
| Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc. | 13 | $231 |
| Sanofi | 7 | $163 |
| Braintree Laboratories, Inc. | 21 | $131 |
| QOL Medical, LLC | 5 | $119 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 7 | $113 |
| Bristol Myers Squibb | 6 | $106 |
| Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc | 7 | $103 |
| Evoke Pharma, Inc. | 5 | $100 |
| Phathom Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 3 | $97 |
| Ipsen Biopharmaceuticals, Inc | 4 | $76 |
| Redhill Biopharma Inc. | 5 | $72 |
| Medtronic | 3 | $66 |
| Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. | 2 | $49 |
| Pfizer | 3 | $40 |
| Boston Scientific | 1 | $17 |
| Shionogi Inc | 1 | $17 |
| Amgen | 1 | $13 |
| Daiichi Sankyo Inc. | 1 | $13 |
| Olympus America Inc. | 1 | $12 |
| Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $11 |
How this compares
$6,497 in reported general payments places this provider in the 70th percentile of 254 gastroenterology providers in Louisiana.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| StelaraUstekinumab | 43 | $1,145,999 |
| EpclusaSofosbuvir/Velpatasvir | 14 | $330,888 |
| ZenpepLipase/Protease/Amylase | 65 | $255,053 |
| LinzessLinaclotide | 346 | $211,154 |
| XifaxanRifaximin | 55 | $172,363 |
| CreonLipase/Protease/Amylase | 41 | $117,786 |
| RinvoqUpadacitinib | 14 | $103,103 |
| Humira(Cf) PenAdalimumab | 13 | $90,626 |
| Humira PenAdalimumab | 12 | $81,739 |
| Mesalamine | 63 | $34,673 |
| RelistorMethylnaltrexone Bromide | 15 | $30,875 |
| GimotiMetoclopramide Hcl | 13 | $25,825 |
| Budesonide ErBudesonide | 11 | $10,247 |
| TrulancePlecanatide | 13 | $8,219 |
| Ursodiol | 52 | $6,807 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Companies that both paid and supply prescribed drugs
These companies both reported payments to this provider and make drugs the provider prescribed under Medicare Part D in 2024. For most specialties this overlap is expected — a cardiologist who is paid by a cardiology drugmaker also treats heart disease. It is shown so the reader can see it, not because it implies anything on its own.
| Company | Paid to this provider | Part D cost of their drugs |
|---|---|---|
| Johnson & JohnsonStelara | $659 | $1,145,99943 claims |
| AbbVieLinzess, Creon, Rinvoq | $1,596 | $432,043401 claims |
| GileadEpclusa | $328 | $330,88814 claims |
| Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc.Zenpep | $231 | $255,05365 claims |
| Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLCXifaxan, Relistor, Trulance | $1,101 | $211,45783 claims |
| Evoke Pharma, Inc.Gimoti | $100 | $25,82513 claims |
| Braintree Laboratories, Inc.Sutab, Suflave | $131 | $4,83734 claims |
Reading this fairly. The Part D column is what drug plans and patients paid pharmacies — this provider received none of it, and it reflects how many patients they treat and what those drugs cost. Against peers, this provider's reported payments sit in the 70th percentile of 254 gastroenterology providers in Louisiana.
Other gastroenterology in Bastrop
- Jonathon ChapmanBaton Rouge$998K
- Conar FittonKenner$955K
- Gia LandryBaton Rouge$511K
- Charles MonierThibodaux$448K
- Nathaniel RanneyCovington$392K
- Georges CatinisMetairie$346K
- Humberto AguilarShreveport$313K
- Sarah GloverNew Orleans$274K
- Nisha LoganantharajNew Orleans$173K
- Shamita ShahNew Orleans$114K
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.