Brian Benson, MD
Otolaryngology · Hackensack, NJNPI 1336312420
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — consulting fees (37.3%), education and food and beverage — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. 22 manufacturers reported payments, led by Intuitive Surgical at 47.7% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $6,950 and has fallen 89.0% since, to $763 in 2025. Among otolaryngology clinicians in NJ 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 58 payments — averaging $245.57 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Intuitive Surgical$7K
- Acera Surgical, Inc.$5K
- Inspire Medical Systems, Inc.$931
- Aerin Medical Inc.$327
- Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc.$123
- Merz Pharmaceuticals, LLC$105
- plus $657 from 16 others
Across 1 payment — averaging $3540.00 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.
- Acera Surgical, Inc.$4K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$5,31037%
- Travel & lodging$1,90613%
- Food & beverage$2,52718%
- Education$4,50032%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Intuitive Surgical | 8 | $6,790 |
| Acera Surgical, Inc. | 1 | $5,310 |
| Inspire Medical Systems, Inc. | 8 | $931 |
| Aerin Medical Inc. | 7 | $327 |
| Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. | 2 | $123 |
| Merz Pharmaceuticals, LLC | 1 | $105 |
| GSK | 6 | $101 |
| Medtronic(2 entities) | 4 | $96 |
| Hologic Sales And Service, LLC | 3 | $70 |
| Intersect ENT, Inc. | 2 | $64 |
| Axogen | 2 | $56 |
| Stryker | 1 | $47 |
| Optinose US, Inc. | 3 | $44 |
| Boston Scientific | 2 | $36 |
| Kerecis Limited | 1 | $32 |
| Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc | 1 | $21 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 1 | $18 |
| Merck | 1 | $16 |
| Olympus America Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
| Alk-abello, Inc | 1 | $14 |
| Covidien LP | 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.
- Da Vinci Surgical System$6,576
- Restrata Wound Matrix$5,310
- Inspire Upper Airway Stimulation System$686
- Inspire$150
- VIVAER STYLUS$147
- RHINAER STYLUS$147
- DUPIXENT$108
- XEOMIN$105
How this compares
$14,243 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 232 otolaryngology providers in New Jersey.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Azelastine Hcl | 198 | $4,767 |
| Ipratropium Bromide | 83 | $2,730 |
| Ciprofloxacin-DexamethasoneCiprofloxacin Hcl/Dexameth | 24 | $2,541 |
| Fluticasone Propionate | 130 | $1,993 |
| Flunisolide | 27 | $993 |
| Triamcinolone Acetonide | 23 | $939 |
| Cephalexin | 23 | $913 |
| Omeprazole | 64 | $813 |
| Methylprednisolone | 38 | $269 |
| Nystatin | 11 | $262 |
| Amoxicillin-Clavulanate PotassAmoxicillin/Potassium Clav | 33 | $220 |
| Amitriptyline Hcl | 18 | $173 |
| Amoxicillin | 38 | $162 |
| Azithromycin | 25 | $113 |
| Mupirocin | 14 | $75 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other otolaryngology in Hackensack
- Andrew BlitzerHackensack$9K
- Masayuki InouyeHackensack$4K
- Jonathan LessersonHackensack$3K
- Steven GoldHackensack$3K
- Nishant ReddyEast Windsor$133K
- Giant LinFlorham Park$25K
- Samir ShahVoorhees$16K
- Ahmad MahmoudClifton$9K
- Jean EloyNewark$8K
- Ramtin KassirWayne$8K
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.