Darshak Karia, MD
Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiology · Augusta, GANPI 1033170097
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by speaking fees: $182,680 of the $296,031 with a category attached, or 61.7%. 20 manufacturers reported payments, led by Merck at 48.7% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2022 at $117,056 and has fallen 85.3% since, to $17,155 in 2025. Among advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology clinicians in GA 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 487 payments — averaging $607.87 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Merck$144K
- Abbott$53K
- AstraZeneca$38K
- Boehringer Ingelheim$21K
- Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc.$16K
- Novartis$11K
- plus $13K from 14 others
Across 100 payments — averaging $6115.45 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.
- Abbott$294K
- Boston Scientific$160K
- Novartis$82K
- Procyrion, Inc.$45K
- AstraZeneca$31K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$39,63813%
- Speaking & faculty fees$182,68062%
- Travel & lodging$60,91221%
- Food & beverage$12,6824%
- Education$1190%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Merck | 106 | $144,141 |
| Abbott | 239 | $52,935 |
| AstraZeneca | 45 | $37,523 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 14 | $21,014 |
| Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 15 | $15,871 |
| Novartis | 16 | $11,385 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 8 | $7,132 |
| Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc. | 12 | $4,676 |
| Abiomed | 2 | $363 |
| Cvrx, Inc. | 6 | $362 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 7 | $121 |
| Biotronik Inc. | 1 | $115 |
| Pfizer | 3 | $65 |
| Boston Scientific | 1 | $63 |
| ZOLL Services LLC (a/k/a ZOLL Lifecor Corp) | 4 | $55 |
| Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 3 | $55 |
| Livanova USA, Inc. | 1 | $52 |
| Scpharmaceuticals Inc. | 2 | $45 |
| Edwards Lifesciences | 1 | $37 |
| Medtronic | 1 | $20 |
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.
- VERQUVO$193,411
- FARXIGA$37,024
- JARDIANCE$27,935
- CardioMEMS HF System$23,696
- AMVUTTRA$15,512
- ENTRESTO$10,725
- CARDIOMEMS$8,516
- HeartMate 3 Left Ventricular Dev$8,330
- HeartMate 3 Left Ventricular Assist Device$5,000
- OPSUMIT$4,486
- UPTRAVI$4,486
- THORATEC HEARTMATE 3 LVAS IMPLANT KIT$2,077
- HeartMate II LVAS$695
- Cardiovascular- Research only$472
- Impella$292
- Barostim Neo System$141
- HeartMate Touch$101
How this compares
$296,031 in reported general payments places this provider in the 90th percentile of 40 advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology providers in Georgia.
See all advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology providers in Georgia →
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 |
|---|---|---|
| UptraviSelexipag | 140 | $3,098,461 |
| VyndamaxTafamidis | 31 | $710,081 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 465 | $483,243 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 336 | $331,354 |
| AdempasRiociguat | 19 | $267,666 |
| EliquisApixaban | 229 | $218,371 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 235 | $214,025 |
| VerquvoVericiguat | 46 | $52,799 |
| Sildenafil Citrate | 80 | $11,703 |
| OzempicSemaglutide | 11 | $10,807 |
| Midodrine Hcl | 119 | $8,792 |
| Metoprolol Succinate | 492 | $5,809 |
| Hydralazine Hcl | 295 | $3,883 |
| Isosorbide Mononitrate ErIsosorbide Mononitrate | 222 | $3,015 |
| Amiodarone Hcl | 129 | $2,986 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc.Uptravi | $4,676 | $3,098,461140 claims |
| PfizerVyndamax, Eliquis | $65 | $928,452260 claims |
| NovartisEntresto | $11,385 | $483,243465 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance | $21,014 | $331,354336 claims |
| AstraZenecaFarxiga | $37,523 | $214,025235 claims |
| MerckVerquvo | $144,141 | $52,79946 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 40 advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology providers in Georgia.
Other advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology in Augusta
- Arthur ChandlerAugusta$3K
- Shuchita GuptaAugusta$947
- Andrew DarlingtonFayetteville$1M
- Catherine MartiAthens$343K
- Ugochukwu EgolumGainesville$235K
- Abdul Latif BikakMarietta$214K
- Robert ColeAtlanta$213K
- Nikolas KrishnaMarietta$124K
- Brian HowardMarietta$99K
- Alanna MorrisGainesville$85K
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.