Kathleen Benson, MD
Interventional Cardiology · Las Vegas, NVNPI 1235207309
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 99.6% of the total across 263 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 39 manufacturers, the largest accounting for just 14.4% — the pattern of someone who eats at a lot of different presentations. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $2,418 and has fallen 60.0% since, to $968 in 2025. That places this record below the midpoint for interventional cardiology clinicians in NV, where the typical reported total is $9,708.
Across 263 payments — averaging $23.53 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Novartis$894
- Medtronic$646
- Pfizer$499
- Amgen$485
- ZOLL Services LLC (a/k/a ZOLL Lifecor Corp)$463
- Abiomed$462
- plus $3K from 33 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$6,167100%
- Education$220%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Novartis | 49 | $894 |
| Medtronic | 6 | $646 |
| Pfizer | 27 | $499 |
| Amgen | 26 | $485 |
| ZOLL Services LLC (a/k/a ZOLL Lifecor Corp) | 29 | $463 |
| Abiomed | 6 | $462 |
| Merck | 15 | $397 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 18 | $357 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 23 | $327 |
| Abbott | 5 | $244 |
| Philips North America LLC | 7 | $141 |
| AstraZeneca | 10 | $138 |
| Novo Nordisk | 5 | $106 |
| UCB, Inc. | 1 | $105 |
| Kiniksa Pharmaceuticals International, PLC | 3 | $102 |
| Cardiovascular Systems Inc. | 3 | $97 |
| Boston Scientific | 3 | $74 |
| Edwards Lifesciences | 2 | $71 |
| Bard Peripheral Vascular, Inc. | 1 | $55 |
| Irhythm Technologies, Inc. | 2 | $43 |
| Preventice Services, LLC | 1 | $40 |
| Sanofi-aventis U.S. LLC | 2 | $40 |
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 2 | $38 |
| Bridgebio Pharma, Inc. | 1 | $36 |
| Cvrx, Inc. | 1 | $34 |
| Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc. | 2 | $30 |
| Kestra Medical Technology Services, Inc. | 1 | $29 |
| Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 1 | $28 |
| Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $27 |
| Braemar Manufacturing, LLC | 1 | $22 |
| Bayer | 1 | $21 |
| GSK | 1 | $20 |
| Biotronik Inc. | 1 | $20 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 1 | $20 |
| Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. | 1 | $19 |
| Elutia, Inc. | 1 | $18 |
| Tactile Systems Technology Inc | 1 | $15 |
| Vivaquant Inc, Dba Rhythm Express | 1 | $14 |
| Bardy Diagnostics, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
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.
- Impella$232
- CardioMEMS HF System$168
- Micra$168
- Reveal LINQ$136
- CoreValve Evolut$129
- ENTRESTO$119
- Chocolate PTA Balloon$110
How this compares
$6,189 in reported general payments places this provider in the 30th percentile of 62 interventional cardiology providers in Nevada.
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 | 175 | $224,767 |
| XareltoRivaroxaban | 47 | $50,758 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 22 | $34,989 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 11 | $11,444 |
| BrilintaTicagrelor | 11 | $10,643 |
| Ranolazine ErRanolazine | 81 | $10,156 |
| Isosorbide Dinitrate | 18 | $4,700 |
| Ezetimibe | 118 | $4,442 |
| Metoprolol Succinate | 287 | $3,479 |
| Atorvastatin Calcium | 363 | $3,085 |
| Labetalol Hcl | 68 | $2,696 |
| Potassium Chloride | 116 | $2,548 |
| Isosorbide Mononitrate ErIsosorbide Mononitrate | 219 | $2,443 |
| Midodrine Hcl | 11 | $2,071 |
| Amlodipine Besylate | 357 | $2,045 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| PfizerEliquis | $499 | $224,767175 claims |
| Johnson & JohnsonXarelto | $327 | $50,75847 claims |
| NovartisEntresto | $894 | $34,98922 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance | $20 | $11,44411 claims |
| AstraZenecaBrilinta | $138 | $10,64311 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 30th percentile of 62 interventional cardiology providers in Nevada.
Other interventional cardiology in Las Vegas
- Cres MirandaLas Vegas$660K
- Adrian Mercado-AlamoLas Vegas$118K
- Nayab ZafarLas Vegas$102K
- William ChuLas Vegas$75K
- Neville MistryLas Vegas$36K
- Leon VarjabedianLas Vegas$34K
- Moniz DawoodLas Vegas$29K
- Andrew LuxhojLas Vegas$22K
- Mohi AlkadriLas Vegas$20K
- John BedottoLas Vegas$20K
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.