Maher Kassis, MD
Internal Medicine · Irvine, KYNPI 1912968603
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by speaking fees: $22,576 of the $28,246 with a category attached, or 79.9%. Novo Nordisk accounts for 89.5% of it on its own, with 28 other manufacturers making up the rest. Reporting peaked in 2022 at $18,471 and has fallen 98.4% since, to $290 in 2025. Among internal medicine clinicians in KY 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 237 payments — averaging $119.18 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Novo Nordisk$25K
- GSK$449
- Johnson & Johnson$430
- Pfizer$367
- AbbVie$319
- AstraZeneca$305
- plus $1K from 23 others
What the payments were for
- Speaking & faculty fees$22,57680%
- Travel & lodging$9013%
- Food & beverage$4,76917%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Novo Nordisk | 60 | $25,268 |
| GSK | 31 | $449 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 23 | $430 |
| Pfizer | 19 | $367 |
| AbbVie(2 entities) | 19 | $319 |
| AstraZeneca(2 entities) | 18 | $305 |
| Amgen | 10 | $242 |
| Abbott | 8 | $142 |
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 7 | $109 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 6 | $85 |
| Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC | 5 | $80 |
| Merck | 5 | $61 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 4 | $51 |
| Xeris Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 3 | $49 |
| Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc. | 2 | $35 |
| Amarin Pharma, Inc. | 2 | $32 |
| Dexcom, Inc. | 2 | $28 |
| Acadia Pharmaceuticals Inc | 2 | $28 |
| Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. | 1 | $22 |
| Pulmonx Corporation | 1 | $17 |
| Avanir Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $16 |
| Idorsia Pharmaceuticals US Inc | 1 | $16 |
| Novartis | 1 | $15 |
| Insulet Corporation | 1 | $14 |
| Evoke Pharma, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
| Nestle Healthcare Nutrition Inc. | 1 | $14 |
| Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc. | 1 | $13 |
| Sanofi-aventis U.S. LLC | 1 | $13 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 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
$28,246 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 1,284 internal medicine providers in Kentucky.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| OzempicSemaglutide | 278 | $326,114 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 256 | $210,693 |
| EliquisApixaban | 314 | $199,801 |
| TradjentaLinagliptin | 150 | $107,175 |
| Trelegy ElliptaFluticasone/Umeclidin/Vilanter | 111 | $94,519 |
| XareltoRivaroxaban | 121 | $64,303 |
| LinzessLinaclotide | 92 | $61,990 |
| Janumet XrSitagliptin Phos/Metformin Hcl | 74 | $61,835 |
| JanuviaSitagliptin Phosphate | 67 | $50,643 |
| MyrbetriqMirabegron | 73 | $40,693 |
| Tresiba Flextouch U-200Insulin Degludec | 16 | $34,338 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 44 | $33,845 |
| Repatha SureclickEvolocumab | 36 | $24,683 |
| MounjaroTirzepatide | 19 | $21,910 |
| JentaduetoLinagliptin/Metformin Hcl | 33 | $18,592 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance, Tradjenta, Jentadueto, Glyxambi, Spiriva Respimat | $51 | $373,974496 claims |
| Novo NordiskOzempic | $25,268 | $326,114278 claims |
| PfizerEliquis | $367 | $199,801314 claims |
| GSKTrelegy Ellipta, Anoro Ellipta, Arexvy, Breo Ellipta | $449 | $129,312203 claims |
| MerckJanumet Xr, Januvia, Janumet | $61 | $123,875158 claims |
| AbbVieLinzess, Vraylar, Namzaric | $319 | $83,727126 claims |
| Johnson & JohnsonXarelto, Invokana | $430 | $80,219135 claims |
| Astellas Pharma US IncMyrbetriq | $109 | $40,69373 claims |
| AstraZenecaFarxiga, Symbicort | $305 | $40,28769 claims |
| Lilly USA, LLCMounjaro | $85 | $21,91019 claims |
| Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc.Gemtesa | $35 | $9,46522 claims |
| NovartisEntresto | $15 | $6,26714 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 95th percentile of 1,284 internal medicine providers in Kentucky.
Other internal medicine in Irvine
- Fares KhaterWhitesburg$412K
- Bernard BuchananOwensboro$185K
- David ManninoLexington$168K
- John PeppinCynthiana$108K
- Sanjay KaulBrownsville$69K
- John JonesHazard$63K
- Robert SasserLouisville$62K
- Justin LandeDanville$60K
- Sanjiv GuptaGrayson$49K
- Kelley McIntyreLouisville$48K
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.