Benjamin Shepherd, MD
Vascular Surgery · Huntsville, ALNPI 1346680782
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by food and beverage: $11,022 of the $13,049 with a category attached, or 84.5%. 41 manufacturers reported payments, led by W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc. at 24.2% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2021 at $2,685 and has fallen 56.9% since, to $1,156 in 2025.
Across 217 payments — averaging $60.13 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.$3K
- Penumbra, Inc.$2K
- Endologix LLC$2K
- Medtronic$1K
- Cook Medical LLC$746
- Silk Road Medical, Inc.$448
- plus $3K from 35 others
What the payments were for
- Travel & lodging$1,80514%
- Food & beverage$11,02284%
- Education$2212%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc. | 47 | $3,163 |
| Penumbra, Inc. | 16 | $2,430 |
| Endologix LLC | 16 | $2,143 |
| Medtronic(2 entities) | 17 | $1,221 |
| Cook Medical LLC | 13 | $746 |
| Silk Road Medical, Inc. | 9 | $448 |
| Terumo Medical Corporation | 8 | $442 |
| Kerecis Limited | 8 | $355 |
| Inari Medical, Inc. | 5 | $300 |
| Imperative Care, Inc | 3 | $188 |
| Mimedx Group, Inc. | 7 | $160 |
| Getinge USA Sales, LLC | 3 | $116 |
| Boston Scientific | 6 | $113 |
| Smith+Nephew | 5 | $112 |
| Lemaitre Vascular, Inc. | 8 | $109 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 7 | $106 |
| Bard Peripheral Vascular, Inc. | 4 | $88 |
| Organogenesis Inc. | 3 | $85 |
| Avita Medical Americas, LLC | 1 | $75 |
| Cagent Vascular Inc | 1 | $73 |
| Solventum Corporation | 2 | $63 |
| Polynovo North America LLC | 3 | $53 |
| Urgo Medical North America, LLC | 2 | $38 |
| Shockwave Medical, Inc | 1 | $37 |
| Integra Lifesciences Corporation | 2 | $36 |
| Convatec Inc. | 2 | $32 |
| KCI USA, Inc. | 1 | $30 |
| Baxter Healthcare | 2 | $30 |
| Artivion, Inc. | 1 | $27 |
| Medela LLC | 2 | $25 |
| Sanara Medtech Inc. | 2 | $24 |
| Bolton Medical Inc | 1 | $24 |
| Bioventus LLC | 1 | $22 |
| Hartmann USA, Inc. | 1 | $21 |
| Inspiremd Ltd | 1 | $20 |
| Abbott | 1 | $18 |
| Teleflex LLC | 1 | $16 |
| Acera Surgical, Inc. | 1 | $16 |
| Tactile Systems Technology Inc | 1 | $15 |
| Acell, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 1 | $13 |
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.
- Indigo System$2,080
- Alto Abdominal Stent Graft System$1,289
- EXCLUDER AAA Endoprosthesis$798
- ENDOCROSS Device$609
- Torus Stent Graft System$609
- IN.PACT Admiral$562
- Kerecis Omega3 Marigen$400
- GORE VIABAHN Endoprosthesis$301
- ENROUTE Transcarotid Stent$285
- ENROUTE Transcarotid Neuroprotection System$285
- VIABAHN VBX Balloon Expandable Endoprosthesis$266
- Azur CX Detachable$251
- Vascular Graft$133
- TurboHawk$131
- EXCLUDER Conformable AAA Endoprosthesis with Active Control$128
- ELLIPSYS VASCULAR ACCESS SYSTEM$120
- GORE EXCLUDER AAA Endoprosthesis$120
- Cook$116
- Cook Medical AAA$106
- TAG Thoracic Endoprosthesis$105
How this compares
$13,049 in reported general payments places this provider in the 75th percentile of 61 vascular surgery providers in Alabama.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| XareltoRivaroxaban | 16 | $13,808 |
| BrilintaTicagrelor | 17 | $7,280 |
| ClopidogrelClopidogrel Bisulfate | 72 | $832 |
| Cilostazol | 13 | $467 |
| Hydrocodone-AcetaminophenHydrocodone/Acetaminophen | 57 | $403 |
| Oxycodone-AcetaminophenOxycodone Hcl/Acetaminophen | 12 | $99 |
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 & JohnsonXarelto | $106 | $13,80816 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 75th percentile of 61 vascular surgery providers in Alabama.
Other vascular surgery in Huntsville
- Andrew KnottHuntsville$76K
- Marco CioppiHuntsville$21K
- Mell WelbornHuntsville$14K
- Ronny JohnsonHuntsville$9K
- Tracy LoweryHuntsville$209
- Rick RobertsHuntsville$131
- Albert PacificoBirmingham$5.1M
- Brian SellersMontgomery$71K
- Peter PonsFlorence$54K
- Benjamin PearceBirmingham$37K
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.