Joel Block, MD
Rheumatology · Chicago, ILNPI 1285659771
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by consulting fees: $8,735 of the $10,190 with a category attached, or 85.7%. 5 manufacturers reported payments, led by GSK at 57.8% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $5,886 and has fallen 99.8% since, to $12 in 2024.
Across 13 payments — averaging $783.82 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- GSK$6K
- Bioventus LLC$4K
- Amgen$20
- Genentech USA, Inc.$14
- Orthopediatrics Corp.$12
Across 18 payments — averaging $9786.06 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.
- Novartis$120K
- AbbVie$38K
- Pfizer$18K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$8,73586%
- Travel & lodging$1,40814%
- Food & beverage$260%
- Education$200%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| GSK | 6 | $5,886 |
| Bioventus LLC | 4 | $4,258 |
| Amgen | 1 | $20 |
| Genentech USA, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
| Orthopediatrics Corp. | 1 | $12 |
How this compares
$10,190 in reported general payments places this provider in the 80th percentile of 287 rheumatology providers in Illinois.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Humira PenAdalimumab | 23 | $156,227 |
| Celecoxib | 23 | $3,099 |
| MethotrexateMethotrexate Sodium | 33 | $1,338 |
| Duloxetine Hcl | 23 | $498 |
| Prednisone | 20 | $322 |
| Gabapentin | 26 | $306 |
| Hydroxychloroquine Sulfate | 20 | $287 |
| Diclofenac Sodium | 13 | $287 |
| Alendronate Sodium | 19 | $188 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other rheumatology in Chicago
- Manish JainChicago$1.9M
- Theodore PincusChicago$524K
- Eric RudermanChicago$440K
- Anisha DuaChicago$280K
- Arthur MandelinChicago$270K
- Robert WoodrickChicago$143K
- Maria SosenkoChicago$87K
- Ailda NikaChicago$74K
- Duncan MooreChicago$71K
- Timothy NiewoldChicago$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.