Joseph Merchant, MD
Hematology & Oncology · Ames, IANPI 1699765826
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
4 manufacturers reported payments, led by Merck at 59.5% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2021 at $215 and has fallen 75.1% since, to $53 in 2025. That places this record below the midpoint for hematology & oncology clinicians in IA, where the typical reported total is $603.
Across 5 payments — averaging $75.75 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Merck$225
- Johnson & Johnson$85
- Genentech, Inc.$53
- AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc.$15
Across 44 payments — averaging $5972.09 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.
- Amgen$62K
- Janssen Research & Development, LLC$55K
- Merck$53K
- E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C.$48K
- Astrazeneca UK Limited$22K
- Bristol Myers Squibb$17K
- plus $6K from 2 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$21557%
- Education$16443%
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 | 2 | $225 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 1 | $85 |
| Genentech, Inc. | 1 | $53 |
| AVEO Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $15 |
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.
- KEYTRUDA$215
How this compares
$379 in reported general payments places this provider in the 40th percentile of 75 hematology & oncology providers in Iowa.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| JakafiRuxolitinib Phosphate | 97 | $1,482,327 |
| BrukinsaZanubrutinib | 72 | $1,023,584 |
| ImbruvicaIbrutinib | 37 | $523,056 |
| InlytaAxitinib | 23 | $259,855 |
| PomalystPomalidomide | 11 | $245,509 |
| RevlimidLenalidomide | 12 | $222,434 |
| XtandiEnzalutamide | 18 | $204,851 |
| VenclextaVenetoclax | 23 | $178,107 |
| EliquisApixaban | 189 | $128,004 |
| Abiraterone Acetate | 23 | $15,992 |
| ZenpepLipase/Protease/Amylase | 11 | $12,673 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 20 | $12,651 |
| Atovaquone | 27 | $8,856 |
| Posaconazole | 16 | $8,162 |
| Potassium Chloride | 243 | $4,871 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other hematology & oncology in Ames
- Sreenath KodaliAmes$3K
- Sonam PatelAmes$1K
- Venkatesh RudrapatnaAmes$101
- Sakeer HussainCouncil Bluffs$74K
- Usha PerepuIowa City$70K
- Umang SwamiIowa City$54K
- Umar FarooqIowa City$30K
- Brian LinkIowa City$26K
- Mark KarwalIowa City$25K
- Kartik AnandWest Des Moines$24K
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.