Ebere Chukwu, MD
Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiology · Temple, TXNPI 1093908535
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by speaking fees: $93,350 of the $114,546 with a category attached, or 81.5%. 17 manufacturers reported payments, led by Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. at 53.0% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2023 at $48,717 and has fallen 91.1% since, to $4,353 in 2025.
Across 220 payments — averaging $520.66 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc.$61K
- Boehringer Ingelheim$42K
- Lilly USA, LLC$8K
- Abbott$1K
- Abiomed$795
- Cvrx, Inc.$434
- plus $2K from 11 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$7,2206%
- Speaking & faculty fees$93,35081%
- Travel & lodging$7,7297%
- Food & beverage$6,2045%
- Education$420%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 65 | $60,753 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 48 | $41,660 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 6 | $7,615 |
| Abbott | 27 | $1,459 |
| Abiomed | 8 | $795 |
| Cvrx, Inc. | 3 | $434 |
| Novartis | 20 | $413 |
| AstraZeneca | 11 | $373 |
| Novo Nordisk | 6 | $306 |
| Pfizer | 10 | $286 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 5 | $201 |
| Merck | 4 | $115 |
| Impulse Dynamics (USA) Inc. | 2 | $62 |
| ZOLL Services LLC (a/k/a ZOLL Lifecor Corp) | 2 | $30 |
| Scpharmaceuticals Inc. | 1 | $16 |
| Analog Devices Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| Boston Scientific | 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.
- JARDIANCE$48,625
- ONPATTRO$21,566
- AMVUTTRA$21,308
- Impella$579
- THORATEC HEARTMATE 3 LVAS IMPLANT KIT$503
- Barostim Neo System$383
- HeartMate 3 Left Ventricular Dev$293
- CardioMEMS HF System$183
- Ozempic$110
- Wegovy$107
- 2ND GEN CENTRIMAG PRIMARY CONSOLE$105
- VYNDAQEL$104
- LOKELMA$101
How this compares
$114,546 in reported general payments places this provider in the 85th percentile of 75 advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology providers in Texas.
See all advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology 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 |
|---|---|---|
| VyndamaxTafamidis | 34 | $780,108 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 274 | $309,390 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 256 | $261,650 |
| OzempicSemaglutide | 81 | $86,663 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 95 | $84,792 |
| MounjaroTirzepatide | 11 | $11,337 |
| Metoprolol Succinate | 279 | $7,503 |
| Eplerenone | 24 | $2,806 |
| Spironolactone | 301 | $2,740 |
| Valsartan | 38 | $1,885 |
| Atorvastatin Calcium | 107 | $1,525 |
| Rosuvastatin Calcium | 51 | $1,340 |
| Torsemide | 51 | $1,242 |
| Carvedilol | 79 | $980 |
| Losartan Potassium | 57 | $889 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| PfizerVyndamax | $286 | $780,10834 claims |
| NovartisEntresto | $413 | $309,390274 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance | $41,660 | $261,650256 claims |
| Novo NordiskOzempic | $306 | $86,66381 claims |
| AstraZenecaFarxiga | $373 | $84,79295 claims |
| Lilly USA, LLCMounjaro | $7,615 | $11,33711 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 85th percentile of 75 advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology providers in Texas.
Other advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology in Temple
- Albert HicksTemple$613K
- Robert GottliebDallas$717K
- Allen AndersonSan Antonio$413K
- Martin BerkDallas$379K
- Aasim AfzalPlano$336K
- Kunjan BhattAustin$324K
- Barry TrachtenbergHouston$306K
- Shelley HallDallas$254K
- Arvind BhimarajHouston$216K
- Jerome ThomasAustin$182K
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.