Howard Kurz, MD
Interventional Cardiology · Saint Louis, MONPI 1215968730
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 99.7% of the total across 266 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 17 manufacturers reported payments, led by Philips North America LLC at 24.7% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $3,094 and has fallen 74.0% since, to $805 in 2025. That places this record below the midpoint for interventional cardiology clinicians in MO, where the typical reported total is $10,448.
Across 266 payments — averaging $39.28 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Philips North America LLC$3K
- Boston Scientific$1K
- Abbott$1K
- Medtronic$1K
- Penumbra, Inc.$1K
- Biotronik Inc.$819
- plus $2K from 11 others
Across 9 payments — averaging $10,973 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.
- Philips North America LLC$99K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$80%
- Food & beverage$10,419100%
- Education$210%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Philips North America LLC | 56 | $2,581 |
| Boston Scientific | 32 | $1,463 |
| Abbott | 129 | $1,301 |
| Medtronic(2 entities) | 10 | $1,168 |
| Penumbra, Inc. | 8 | $1,069 |
| Biotronik Inc. | 9 | $819 |
| Shockwave Medical, Inc | 5 | $558 |
| Cardiovascular Systems Inc. | 4 | $400 |
| Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc. | 3 | $355 |
| Abiomed | 2 | $264 |
| Heartflow, Inc. | 2 | $156 |
| Teleflex LLC | 1 | $142 |
| AstraZeneca | 1 | $111 |
| Terumo Medical Corporation | 1 | $22 |
| GE HealthCare | 1 | $17 |
| ZOLL Services LLC (a/k/a ZOLL Lifecor Corp) | 1 | $13 |
| Z-medica, LLC | 1 | $8 |
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.
- Indigo System$837
- ONYX FRONTIER$446
- Shockwave IVL System with the Shockwave C2 Coronary IVL Catheter$425
- Astron; Pulsar; AstronPulsar$359
- PK Papyrus$359
- PRO-Kinetic Energy$359
- Pulsar$359
- Orsiro$359
- ROTAPRO$350
- SYNERGY$344
- IGT D Coronary$341
- SYMPLICITY G3$321
- Xience Sierra Coronary Stent System$288
- Impella$264
- Indigo$257
- Coronary Orbital Atherectomy System$249
- (6571) Eagle Eye$232
- Trilogy 100$231
- (6585) Omniwire$229
- AMPLATZER$173
How this compares
$10,448 in reported general payments places this provider in the 50th percentile of 182 interventional cardiology providers in Missouri.
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 | 186 | $187,956 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 123 | $110,628 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 119 | $104,686 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 55 | $45,595 |
| XareltoRivaroxaban | 23 | $29,508 |
| Repatha SureclickEvolocumab | 38 | $20,424 |
| VascepaIcosapent Ethyl | 11 | $10,193 |
| Ranolazine ErRanolazine | 45 | $4,061 |
| Atorvastatin Calcium | 314 | $2,859 |
| Metoprolol Succinate | 221 | $2,376 |
| Dabigatran EtexilateDabigatran Etexilate Mesylate | 11 | $2,084 |
| Amlodipine Besylate | 256 | $1,899 |
| Potassium Chloride | 60 | $1,749 |
| Nitroglycerin | 79 | $1,693 |
| Isosorbide Mononitrate ErIsosorbide Mononitrate | 136 | $1,627 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AstraZenecaFarxiga | $111 | $45,59555 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 50th percentile of 182 interventional cardiology providers in Missouri.
Other interventional cardiology in Saint Louis
- John LasalaSaint Louis$936K
- Harvey SerotaSaint Louis$752K
- Jasvindar SinghSaint Louis$696K
- Alan ZajariasSaint Louis$203K
- Anish ThomasSaint Louis$171K
- Gus TheodosSaint Louis$165K
- Prashanth ThakkerSaint Louis$129K
- Marc SintekSaint Louis$119K
- George KichuraSaint Louis$118K
- Gil VardiSaint Louis$106K
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.