Ethan Stern, MD
Ophthalmology · Metairie, LANPI 1710470281
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — food and beverage (49.3%), consulting fees and travel and lodging — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. 23 manufacturers reported payments, led by Astellas Pharma US Inc at 27.4% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2024 at $7,727 and has fallen 83.4% since, to $1,281 in 2025. Among ophthalmology clinicians in LA 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 99 payments — averaging $157.90 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Astellas Pharma US Inc$4K
- Bausch & Lomb Americas Inc.$2K
- AbbVie$2K
- Alcon$2K
- Alimera Sciences, Inc.$1K
- Regeneron$1K
- plus $4K from 17 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$5,02532%
- Speaking & faculty fees$8105%
- Travel & lodging$1,98713%
- Food & beverage$7,70849%
- Entertainment$1021%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 8 | $4,282 |
| Bausch & Lomb Americas Inc. | 18 | $2,010 |
| AbbVie | 8 | $1,870 |
| Alcon | 9 | $1,638 |
| Alimera Sciences, Inc. | 6 | $1,082 |
| Regeneron | 12 | $1,081 |
| Dutch Ophthalmic, USA | 6 | $692 |
| Genentech USA, Inc. | 5 | $604 |
| Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 4 | $463 |
| Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. | 5 | $400 |
| Biotissue Holdings Inc. | 2 | $300 |
| Tarsus Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 2 | $207 |
| Topcon Healthcare, Inc. | 2 | $169 |
| Harrow Eye, LLC | 2 | $164 |
| Aerie Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $124 |
| Oyster Point Pharma, Inc. | 1 | $122 |
| Amgen | 1 | $108 |
| Optos, Inc. | 1 | $102 |
| Iridex Corporation | 1 | $86 |
| Mallinckrodt Hospital Products Inc. | 2 | $51 |
| Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Inc. | 1 | $44 |
| ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $16 |
| Sandoz | 1 | $15 |
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.
- Izervay$4,134
- OZURDEX$1,669
- STELLARIS ELITE$1,181
- Iluvien$1,046
- EYLEA HD$877
- EVA, combined machine$647
- VABYSMO$604
- TISSUEBLUE$502
- YUTIQ$460
- Syfovre$377
- EYLEA$266
- PANORAMIC OPHTHALMOSCOPE$204
- OCT OPHTHALMOSCOPE$204
- Prokera$176
- AmnioGraft$176
- Clareon$150
- Constellation$150
- VYZULTA$142
- INFUSE$129
- TRIESENCE$126
How this compares
$15,632 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 286 ophthalmology providers in Louisiana.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Prednisolone Acetate | 18 | $1,196 |
| Ketorolac Tromethamine | 15 | $487 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other ophthalmology in Metairie
- John FrisbeeMetairie$14K
- Benjamin GuidryMetairie$9K
- Scott LanouxMetairie$8K
- Tyler GoffMetairie$7K
- John BoyleMetairie$7K
- Nicholas FrisardMetairie$7K
- Brandon DavisMetairie$7K
- Henry HaleyMetairie$7K
- Owen LacourMetairie$6K
- Joshua GroetschMetairie$6K
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.