Gregory Helmer, MD
Interventional Cardiology · Edina, MNNPI 1144207572
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — speaking fees (39.1%), travel and lodging and food and beverage — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. 20 manufacturers reported payments, led by Medtronic at 51.6% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2022 at $43,159 and has fallen 76.6% since, to $10,090 in 2025.
Across 589 payments — averaging $214.56 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Medtronic$65K
- Edwards Lifesciences$18K
- Ancora Heart, Inc.$15K
- Abbott$9K
- Boston Scientific$7K
- Cardiovascular Systems Inc.$5K
- plus $7K from 14 others
Across 109 payments — averaging $6438.09 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.
- Edwards Lifesciences$608K
- Boston Scientific$48K
- Abbott$19K
- Philips North America LLC$14K
- W. L. Gore & Associates, Inc.$12K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$21,40017%
- Speaking & faculty fees$49,40939%
- Travel & lodging$33,31526%
- Food & beverage$22,11918%
- Education$240%
- Entertainment$1080%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Medtronic(2 entities) | 221 | $65,163 |
| Edwards Lifesciences | 97 | $17,990 |
| Ancora Heart, Inc. | 25 | $14,903 |
| Abbott | 70 | $9,217 |
| Boston Scientific | 108 | $7,044 |
| Cardiovascular Systems Inc. | 9 | $4,967 |
| Acist Medical Systems, Inc. | 1 | $3,150 |
| Heartflow, Inc. | 25 | $1,697 |
| Abiomed | 5 | $566 |
| Cvrx, Inc. | 9 | $463 |
| Teleflex LLC | 5 | $393 |
| Cardiva Medical, Inc. | 2 | $211 |
| Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc. | 2 | $206 |
| Opsens Inc. | 3 | $145 |
| Corindus Inc. | 1 | $118 |
| AstraZeneca | 1 | $48 |
| Cathworks, Inc. | 1 | $25 |
| Philips North America LLC | 1 | $24 |
| Chiesi USA, Inc. | 2 | $24 |
| Penumbra, Inc. | 1 | $19 |
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.
- CoreValve Evolut$33,746
- COREVALVE EVOLUT R$26,048
- AccuCinch$14,121
- Edwards SAPIEN 3 Transcatheter Heart Valve$12,600
- Diamondback Coronary$4,770
- WATCHMAN Access System$3,376
- HD-IVUS$3,150
- AMPLATZER AMULET$1,614
- MitraClip$1,470
- TRICLIP$1,443
- PORTICO$1,250
- Edwards SAPIEN 3 Ultra Transcatheter Heart Valve$917
- SAPIEN 3 Ultra RESILIA$751
- FFRct$715
- EVOQUE$643
- WATCHMAN FLX$433
- Impella$407
- AVVIGO Guidance System$365
- GENERAL - THERAPIES$289
- GUIDELINER$288
How this compares
$126,375 in reported general payments places this provider in the 85th percentile of 84 interventional cardiology providers in Minnesota.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| EliquisApixaban | 41 | $57,703 |
| BrilintaTicagrelor | 21 | $15,521 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 13 | $14,288 |
| Metoprolol Succinate | 118 | $2,148 |
| Atorvastatin Calcium | 81 | $1,133 |
| Rosuvastatin Calcium | 70 | $1,076 |
| Lisinopril | 54 | $864 |
| ClopidogrelClopidogrel Bisulfate | 57 | $642 |
| Torsemide | 14 | $548 |
| Carvedilol | 37 | $531 |
| Nitroglycerin | 36 | $440 |
| Atenolol | 16 | $421 |
| Metoprolol Tartrate | 18 | $307 |
| Isosorbide Mononitrate ErIsosorbide Mononitrate | 19 | $292 |
| Amiodarone Hcl | 12 | $272 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AstraZenecaBrilinta | $48 | $15,52121 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 84 interventional cardiology providers in Minnesota.
Other interventional cardiology in Edina
- Joseph KnapperEdina$4K
- Thom DahleSaint Cloud$1.1M
- Stephen KiddSaint Cloud$607K
- Brian StegmanSt Cloud$587K
- Emmanouil BrilakisMinneapolis$548K
- Wesley PedersenMinneapolis$493K
- Michael ManolesMinneapolis$201K
- Jay TraverseMinneapolis$198K
- Robert WilsonMinneapolis$176K
- Yale WangMinneapolis$168K
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.