Helen Chang-Deguzman, MD
Nephrology · Elkton, MDNPI 1710989926
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 92.6% of the total across 219 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. It is spread thinly across 35 manufacturers, the largest accounting for just 18.5% — the pattern of someone who eats at a lot of different presentations. 2025 is the largest year on record at $1,506, 3.0 times the $505 reported in 2019.
Across 219 payments — averaging $24.20 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- AstraZeneca$980
- Bayer$460
- Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.$344
- Ardelyx, Inc.$331
- Novartis$331
- Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc.$312
- plus $3K from 29 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$4,91193%
- Education$3907%
Most of this is food and beverage — typically meals provided during product presentations at a clinic or hospital. Nationally that is the single largest category of reported payments by count.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AstraZeneca(2 entities) | 33 | $980 |
| Bayer | 20 | $460 |
| Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. | 17 | $344 |
| Ardelyx, Inc. | 8 | $331 |
| Novartis | 15 | $331 |
| Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc. | 14 | $312 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 9 | $310 |
| Travere Therapeutics, Inc. | 18 | $265 |
| Calliditas Therapeutics US Inc. | 8 | $199 |
| OPKO Pharmaceuticals, LLC | 9 | $196 |
| Amgen | 7 | $151 |
| GSK | 8 | $128 |
| Mallinckrodt Hospital Products Inc. | 4 | $122 |
| Vifor Pharma, Inc. | 6 | $119 |
| Akebia Therapeutics Inc | 5 | $117 |
| Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. | 5 | $101 |
| Veloxis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 4 | $90 |
| Scpharmaceuticals Inc. | 4 | $77 |
| Nxstage Medical, Inc. | 1 | $74 |
| Outset Medical Inc | 1 | $72 |
| Novo Nordisk | 1 | $68 |
| ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 2 | $61 |
| AMAG Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 4 | $57 |
| Otsuka Pharmaceutical Development & Commercialization, Inc. | 2 | $51 |
| Sanofi | 2 | $45 |
| Daiichi Sankyo Inc. | 2 | $36 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 2 | $33 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 1 | $31 |
| Kyowa Kirin, Inc. | 1 | $29 |
| Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. | 1 | $25 |
| Mallinckrodt Enterprises LLC | 1 | $21 |
| Pharmacosmos Therapeutics Inc. | 1 | $18 |
| Merck | 1 | $17 |
| CMP Pharma, Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| Strongbridge US Inc. | 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.
- LOKELMA$125
- Kerendia$120
- XPHOZAH 30 MG$116
- JARDIANCE$115
How this compares
$5,301 in reported general payments places this provider in the 85th percentile of 285 nephrology providers in Maryland.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| VelphoroSucroferric Oxyhydroxide | 17 | $100,338 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 76 | $95,455 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 37 | $61,453 |
| KerendiaFinerenone | 38 | $36,437 |
| Sevelamer Carbonate | 26 | $6,104 |
| Cinacalcet Hcl | 24 | $4,793 |
| Methenamine Hippurate | 29 | $2,887 |
| Lactated RingersRinger's Solution,lactated | 19 | $1,899 |
| Calcitriol | 56 | $1,492 |
| Losartan Potassium | 91 | $1,391 |
| Furosemide | 129 | $1,308 |
| Leflunomide | 27 | $1,116 |
| Amlodipine Besylate | 61 | $929 |
| Spironolactone | 100 | $924 |
| Hydralazine Hcl | 46 | $809 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc.Velphoro | $312 | $100,33817 claims |
| AstraZenecaFarxiga | $980 | $95,45576 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance | $310 | $61,45337 claims |
| BayerKerendia | $460 | $36,43738 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 285 nephrology providers in Maryland.
Other nephrology in Elkton
- Collette MehringElkton$5K
- Kiran SamindlaFrederick$491K
- Matthew WeirBaltimore$490K
- Chirag ParikhBaltimore$186K
- Mohamad HanounehBaltimore$174K
- Daniel BrennanBaltimore$133K
- Monika DhillonBaltimore$126K
- Duvuru GeethaBaltimore$91K
- Eli RozaHagerstown$79K
- Mohamed AttaBaltimore$65K
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.