Chike Okechukwu, MD
Nephrology · Upland, PANPI 1174578215
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — travel and lodging (36.7%), food and beverage and consulting fees — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. 24 manufacturers reported payments, led by Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. at 28.5% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2022 at $3,518 and has fallen 89.5% since, to $368 in 2025. Among nephrology clinicians in PA with any reported payments, this total sits in the top 10% — high for the specialty, which is a reason to read the composition above rather than the number alone.
Across 118 payments — averaging $68.47 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.$2K
- AstraZeneca$2K
- Eli Lilly$1K
- Merck$1K
- Vifor Pharma, Inc.$307
- Bayer$166
- plus $1K from 18 others
Across 42 payments — averaging $21,017 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.
- Astrazeneca UK Limited$269K
- GSK$235K
- AstraZeneca$185K
- Eli Lilly$156K
- CSL Behring$19K
- Merck$10K
- plus $8K from 1 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$2,16027%
- Travel & lodging$2,96337%
- Food & beverage$2,85035%
- Education$1061%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. | 7 | $2,299 |
| AstraZeneca(2 entities) | 19 | $1,548 |
| Eli Lilly | 26 | $1,408 |
| Merck | 9 | $1,149 |
| Vifor Pharma, Inc. | 13 | $307 |
| Bayer | 8 | $166 |
| Novo Nordisk | 2 | $150 |
| Calliditas Therapeutics US Inc. | 3 | $148 |
| Amgen | 6 | $132 |
| Akebia Therapeutics Inc | 1 | $125 |
| Aurinia Pharma U.S., Inc. | 2 | $123 |
| Mallinckrodt Enterprises LLC | 2 | $121 |
| Novartis | 5 | $92 |
| Ardelyx, Inc. | 2 | $50 |
| Travere Therapeutics, Inc. | 2 | $47 |
| Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc. | 2 | $37 |
| Scpharmaceuticals Inc. | 1 | $30 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 2 | $28 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 1 | $28 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 1 | $25 |
| Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. | 1 | $19 |
| Sanofi | 1 | $19 |
| OPKO Pharmaceuticals, LLC | 1 | $15 |
| Otsuka Pharmaceutical Development & Commercialization, Inc. | 1 | $11 |
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.
How this compares
$8,079 in reported general payments places this provider in the 90th percentile of 586 nephrology providers in Pennsylvania.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 29 | $22,681 |
| VeltassaPatiromer Calcium Sorbitex | 12 | $16,511 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 16 | $13,070 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 13 | $10,090 |
| Calcium Acetate | 59 | $2,408 |
| Potassium Citrate ErPotassium Citrate | 12 | $1,490 |
| Nifedipine ErNifedipine | 26 | $1,056 |
| Tamsulosin Hcl | 21 | $505 |
| Bumetanide | 13 | $443 |
| Amlodipine Besylate | 61 | $437 |
| Losartan Potassium | 61 | $360 |
| Furosemide | 63 | $328 |
| Atorvastatin Calcium | 13 | $306 |
| Spironolactone | 16 | $303 |
| Hydrochlorothiazide | 40 | $302 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AstraZenecaFarxiga | $1,548 | $22,68129 claims |
| NovartisEntresto | $92 | $13,07016 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance | $28 | $10,09013 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 90th percentile of 586 nephrology providers in Pennsylvania.
Other nephrology in Upland
- Nelson KopytAllentown$949K
- Christopher GislerPittsburgh$757K
- Rakesh GulatiPhiladelphia$657K
- Raymond TownsendPhiladelphia$357K
- Prince AnandDanville$331K
- Ellie KelepourisPhiladelphia$287K
- Jonathan DiamondHarrisburg$249K
- Abdallahsassine GearaPhiladelphia$225K
- Khaled NasharPittsburgh$198K
- Katalin SusztakPhiladelphia$192K
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.