Jay Lee, MD
Thoracic Surgery (Cardiothoracic Vascular Surgery) · Los Angeles, CANPI 1952326654
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — consulting fees (55.0%), speaking fees and travel and lodging — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. 18 manufacturers reported payments, led by Merck at 38.9% of the total. 2025 is the largest year on record at $166,506, more than ten times the $16,202 reported in 2019. Among thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) clinicians in CA 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 330 payments — averaging $1400.44 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Merck$180K
- AstraZeneca$74K
- Regeneron$58K
- Genentech, Inc.$32K
- Genentech USA, Inc.$30K
- E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C.$30K
- plus $59K from 12 others
Across 47 payments — averaging $9875.17 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.
- Astrazeneca UK Limited$323K
- Merck$68K
- Genentech, Inc.$30K
- F. Hoffmann-la Roche AG$24K
- Novartis$13K
- Novartis Pharma AG$6K
- plus $514 from 1 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$254,06555%
- Speaking & faculty fees$113,82425%
- Travel & lodging$86,31219%
- Food & beverage$7,9442%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Merck | 93 | $179,784 |
| AstraZeneca | 66 | $74,038 |
| Regeneron | 61 | $58,181 |
| Genentech, Inc. | 18 | $31,739 |
| Genentech USA, Inc. | 26 | $29,989 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 21 | $29,779 |
| Novartis | 12 | $21,871 |
| F. Hoffmann-la Roche AG | 12 | $16,043 |
| Eli Lilly | 5 | $8,000 |
| AbbVie | 4 | $6,659 |
| Astrazeneca UK Limited | 4 | $4,296 |
| Foundation Medicine, Inc. | 1 | $1,081 |
| Zimmer Biomet | 2 | $339 |
| Medtronic | 1 | $150 |
| Daiichi Sankyo Inc. | 1 | $116 |
| Intuitive Surgical | 1 | $28 |
| Pfizer | 1 | $28 |
| Baxter Healthcare | 1 | $24 |
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.
- LIBTAYO$51,670
- TECENTRIQ$51,193
- IMFINZI$27,300
- TAGRISSO$24,375
- OPDIVO$16,537
- KEYTRUDA$16,070
- TABRECTA$9,833
- ILARIS$9,386
- Alecensa$9,044
- Enhertu$4,302
- FOUNDATIONONE CDX$1,081
- Non-Covered Product$878
- OSS Orthopedic Salvage System$198
- Signia$150
- RibFix Blu$141
How this compares
$462,144 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 546 thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) providers in California.
See all thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) providers in California →
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Gabapentin | 14 | $73 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) in Los Angeles
- Fernando FleischmanLos Angeles$608K
- Harmik SoukiasianLos Angeles$577K
- Raymond LeeLos Angeles$291K
- Bryan BurtLos Angeles$138K
- Harold TabaieLos Angeles$120K
- Richard SheminLos Angeles$112K
- Anthony KimLos Angeles$66K
- Jonathan PraegerLos Angeles$60K
- Craig BakerLos Angeles$58K
- Thomas FogartyPortola Valley$3.7M
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.