Jeffrey Merling
Family Medicine · Cincinnati, OHNPI 1366434391
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 100.0% of the total across 280 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 40 manufacturers, the largest accounting for just 13.8% — the pattern of someone who eats at a lot of different presentations. Reporting peaked in 2022 at $1,068 and has fallen 94.8% since, to $56 in 2025.
Across 280 payments — averaging $16.10 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- AbbVie$623
- Pfizer$573
- AstraZeneca$551
- Novo Nordisk$370
- Lilly USA, LLC$227
- GSK$227
- plus $2K from 34 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$4,507100%
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(2 entities) | 40 | $623 |
| Pfizer | 53 | $573 |
| AstraZeneca | 14 | $551 |
| Novo Nordisk | 25 | $370 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 11 | $227 |
| GSK | 15 | $227 |
| Merck | 15 | $209 |
| Amgen | 9 | $147 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 9 | $127 |
| Phathom Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $123 |
| Abbott | 6 | $122 |
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 8 | $116 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 8 | $114 |
| Daiichi Sankyo Inc. | 7 | $103 |
| Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. | 7 | $99 |
| Biohaven Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 6 | $99 |
| Amarin Pharma, Inc. | 5 | $72 |
| Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC | 5 | $67 |
| Bayer | 3 | $54 |
| Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | 4 | $52 |
| Hikma Pharmaceuticals USA | 3 | $39 |
| Jazz Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 2 | $35 |
| Dexcom, Inc. | 2 | $34 |
| Exact Sciences | 2 | $32 |
| Corium, LLC | 2 | $32 |
| Novartis | 2 | $29 |
| Ironshore Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 1 | $25 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 2 | $24 |
| Currax Pharmaceuticals LLC | 2 | $20 |
| Xeris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $19 |
| Esperion Therapeutics, Inc. | 1 | $17 |
| Vivus LLC | 1 | $17 |
| Kaleo, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
| Neos Therapeutics, LP | 1 | $14 |
| Genentech USA, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
| Bausch Health US, LLC | 1 | $14 |
| Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Ltd. | 1 | $14 |
| MDD US Operations, LLC | 1 | $13 |
| Dermira, Inc. | 1 | $12 |
| Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc. | 1 | $11 |
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.
How this compares
$4,507 in reported general payments places this provider in the 85th percentile of 3,983 family medicine providers in Ohio.
Most prescribed under Part D
| Drug | Claims | Cost to plans & patients |
|---|---|---|
| Solifenacin Succinate | 15 | $301 |
| Losartan Potassium | 18 | $172 |
| Tamsulosin Hcl | 12 | $139 |
| Levothyroxine Sodium | 14 | $107 |
| Atorvastatin Calcium | 13 | $93 |
| Simvastatin | 12 | $85 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other family medicine in Cincinnati
- Michael HeileCincinnati$272K
- Amy MechleyCincinnati$120K
- Melissa SchroerCincinnati$116K
- William CoxCincinnati$23K
- Jeffrey SusmanCincinnati$21K
- Ginger KubalaCincinnati$19K
- Kwabena OtengSpringdale$2M
- Brian BeesleyColumbus$1.4M
- Darshana PatelBeachwood$648K
- Thomas GraceFindlay$503K
Where these figures come from
- Payments: CMS Open Payments, program years 2019–2025 (publication P06302026_06032026).
- Identity: NPPES NPI Registry, July 2026.