Benjamin Pagano
Clinical Nurse Specialist · Austin, TXNPI 1669722732
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 98.8% of the total across 162 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. It is spread thinly across 40 manufacturers, the largest accounting for just 12.7% — the pattern of someone who eats at a lot of different presentations. 2025 is the largest year on record at $1,481, 2.3 times the $648 reported in 2021. Among clinical nurse specialist clinicians in TX with any reported payments, this total sits in the top 5% — high for the specialty, which is a reason to read the composition above rather than the number alone.
Across 162 payments — averaging $26.45 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Novo Nordisk$543
- BETA Bionics, Inc.$387
- Lilly USA, LLC$318
- Amgen$311
- Boehringer Ingelheim$256
- Corcept Therapeutics$246
- plus $2K from 34 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$4,23399%
- Education$521%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Novo Nordisk | 17 | $543 |
| BETA Bionics, Inc. | 6 | $387 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 10 | $318 |
| Amgen | 19 | $311 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 7 | $256 |
| Corcept Therapeutics | 8 | $246 |
| AbbVie | 9 | $203 |
| Clarus Therapeutics Inc. | 1 | $188 |
| Bayer | 3 | $157 |
| Radius Health, Inc. | 6 | $137 |
| Sequel Med Tech, LLC | 3 | $134 |
| Dexcom, Inc. | 6 | $129 |
| Xeris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 7 | $124 |
| Sanofi-aventis U.S. LLC | 5 | $107 |
| Mannkind Corporation | 6 | $102 |
| Medtronic | 5 | $100 |
| Insulet Corporation | 5 | $88 |
| AstraZeneca(2 entities) | 5 | $88 |
| Abbott | 3 | $68 |
| Recordati_rare_diseases_inc. | 3 | $66 |
| Amarin Pharma, Inc. | 3 | $62 |
| Tandem Diabetes Care, Inc. | 3 | $53 |
| Intuity Medical Inc | 3 | $49 |
| Alvogen Inc | 2 | $39 |
| Antares Pharma, Inc. | 2 | $37 |
| Zealand Pharma US, Inc. | 1 | $36 |
| Ascensia Diabetes Care US Inc. | 1 | $24 |
| GSK | 1 | $23 |
| IBSA Pharma Inc. | 1 | $23 |
| Novartis | 1 | $21 |
| Halozyme Inc | 1 | $20 |
| Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $19 |
| Cequr Corporation | 1 | $19 |
| Ascendis Pharma Endocrinology Inc | 1 | $17 |
| Acella Pharmaceuticals, LLC | 1 | $16 |
| Tolmar, Inc. | 1 | $16 |
| Chiesi USA, Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| Lifescan, Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 1 | $14 |
| Pfizer | 1 | $14 |
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.
- iLet Bionic Pancreas$837
- JATENZO$563
- iLet Insulin Infusion Kit Inset$175
- iLet Insulin Infusion Kit Contact Detach$175
- Kerendia$126
- Ozempic$125
- JARDIANCE$122
- Wegovy$122
- MOUNJARO$122
- Korlym$120
How this compares
$4,284 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 88 clinical nurse specialist providers in Texas.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| OzempicSemaglutide | 253 | $312,461 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 191 | $221,933 |
| MounjaroTirzepatide | 119 | $161,920 |
| TrulicityDulaglutide | 76 | $98,570 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 75 | $76,770 |
| Humulin R U-500 KwikpenInsulin Regular, Human | 12 | $64,249 |
| Tresiba Flextouch U-100Insulin Degludec | 51 | $42,353 |
| Toujeo SolostarInsulin Glargine,hum.Rec.Anlog | 44 | $38,787 |
| RybelsusSemaglutide | 28 | $35,145 |
| JanuviaSitagliptin Phosphate | 39 | $32,498 |
| Tresiba Flextouch U-200Insulin Degludec | 14 | $29,423 |
| Humalog Kwikpen U-200Insulin Lispro | 14 | $29,352 |
| Toujeo Max SolostarInsulin Glargine,hum.Rec.Anlog | 17 | $23,910 |
| Novolog FlexpenInsulin Aspart | 51 | $23,125 |
| Janumet XrSitagliptin Phos/Metformin Hcl | 13 | $20,793 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Novo NordiskOzempic, Rybelsus, Novolog, Tresiba | $543 | $359,899324 claims |
| Lilly USA, LLCMounjaro, Trulicity, Lyumjev, Humalog | $318 | $282,145232 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance, Tradjenta | $256 | $241,692210 claims |
| AstraZenecaFarxiga | $88 | $76,77075 claims |
| AbbVieSynthroid | $203 | $8,840116 claims |
| Sanofi-aventis U.S. LLCLantus | $107 | $1,78612 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 95th percentile of 88 clinical nurse specialist providers in Texas.
Other clinical nurse specialist in Austin
- Rebecca MontiAustin$53K
- Martha QuintonAustin$6K
- Donna PrebleAustin$4K
- Rachel KohlsAustin$4K
- Chloe Marien-CaseyAustin$2K
- Emily BeddingfieldAustin$2K
- Adrienne BrennerAustin$2K
- Haiyan LiuAustin$2K
- Judith ChedvilleAustin$2K
- Susanne MorrisAustin$763
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.