Howard Klein, MD
Gastroenterology · Clearwater, FLNPI 1285717033
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 99.0% of the total across 247 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 32 manufacturers reported payments, led by AbbVie at 27.2% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2023 at $1,484 and has fallen 51.3% since, to $723 in 2025.
Across 247 payments — averaging $21.11 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- AbbVie$1K
- Johnson & Johnson$1K
- Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc.$573
- Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC$373
- Gilead$294
- Phathom Pharmaceuticals, Inc.$191
- plus $1K from 26 others
Across 24 payments — averaging $2190.77 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.
- Pfizer$53K
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$5,16099%
- Education$541%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AbbVie | 79 | $1,416 |
| Johnson & Johnson(2 entities) | 50 | $1,089 |
| Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. | 25 | $573 |
| Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC | 17 | $373 |
| Gilead | 14 | $294 |
| Phathom Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 3 | $191 |
| Bristol Myers Squibb | 9 | $187 |
| Pfizer | 7 | $121 |
| Merck | 5 | $113 |
| Celltrion USA Inc. | 4 | $107 |
| Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc | 5 | $90 |
| Madrigal Pharmaceuticals | 2 | $63 |
| Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. | 3 | $59 |
| Fujifilm Healthcare Americas Corporation | 1 | $49 |
| Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC | 2 | $48 |
| Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 3 | $48 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 2 | $47 |
| Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc. | 2 | $46 |
| Sanofi | 1 | $40 |
| Amgen | 1 | $30 |
| Apollo Endosurgery US Inc | 1 | $26 |
| Stryker | 1 | $24 |
| Exact Sciences | 1 | $23 |
| Ardelyx, Inc. | 1 | $21 |
| Braintree Laboratories, Inc. | 1 | $20 |
| AMAG Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $20 |
| Axonics, Inc. | 1 | $19 |
| Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $18 |
| Redhill Biopharma Inc. | 1 | $18 |
| Shire North American Group Inc | 1 | $15 |
| Alfasigma USA, Inc. | 1 | $13 |
| Daiichi Sankyo Inc. | 1 | $13 |
How this compares
$5,213 in reported general payments places this provider in the 65th percentile of 1,388 gastroenterology providers in Florida.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| CreonLipase/Protease/Amylase | 26 | $102,808 |
| LinzessLinaclotide | 42 | $33,637 |
| VoqueznaVonoprazan Fumarate | 13 | $9,469 |
| SutabSod Sulf/Pot Chloride/Mag Sulf | 52 | $8,412 |
| Sod Sulf-Potass Sulf-Mag SulfSodium, Potassium,mag Sulfates | 92 | $5,863 |
| Mesalamine | 31 | $4,874 |
| Dexlansoprazole DrDexlansoprazole | 11 | $3,895 |
| Pantoprazole Sodium | 240 | $3,374 |
| ClenpiqSod Picosulf/Mag Ox/Citric Ac | 18 | $3,110 |
| Omeprazole | 215 | $2,942 |
| Ursodiol | 17 | $2,827 |
| Budesonide DrBudesonide | 36 | $2,729 |
| Sucralfate | 14 | $2,276 |
| Esomeprazole Magnesium | 68 | $1,603 |
| Famotidine | 52 | $1,374 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AbbVieCreon, Linzess | $1,416 | $136,44568 claims |
| Phathom Pharmaceuticals, Inc.Voquezna | $191 | $9,46913 claims |
| Braintree Laboratories, Inc.Sutab | $20 | $8,41252 claims |
| Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc.Clenpiq | $48 | $3,11018 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 65th percentile of 1,388 gastroenterology providers in Florida.
Other gastroenterology in Clearwater
- Samuel GidayOrlando$2M
- Lukasz KwapiszMiami$1.2M
- Jennifer Seminerio-DiehlOrlando$1.1M
- Udayakumar NavaneethanSaint Petersburg$1.1M
- Ronen AraiCoral Springs$1.1M
- Charles SninskyGainesville$983K
- Peter DraganovGainesville$832K
- Arin NewmanMiami Beach$716K
- Joanna LopezMiami$670K
- Jose NietoSebring$573K
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.