Michael Altaweel, MD
Ophthalmology · Madison, WINPI 1700853876
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — travel and lodging (59.8%), food and beverage and education — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. Novartis accounts for 74.3% of it on its own, with 3 other manufacturers making up the rest. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $624 and has fallen 78.9% since, to $132 in 2025.
Across 5 payments — averaging $167.88 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Novartis$624
- Astellas Pharma US Inc$132
- Dutch Ophthalmic, USA$67
- Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.$17
Across 18 payments — averaging $24,032 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$418K
- Genentech, Inc.$14K
What the payments were for
- Travel & lodging$50260%
- Food & beverage$32038%
- Education$172%
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 | 2 | $624 |
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 1 | $132 |
| Dutch Ophthalmic, USA | 1 | $67 |
| Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $17 |
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.
- Izervay$132
- BUPARLISIB$122
How this compares
$839 in reported general payments places this provider in the 65th percentile of 337 ophthalmology providers in Wisconsin.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| ProlensaBromfenac Sodium | 23 | $10,790 |
| Bromfenac Sodium | 29 | $6,191 |
| Prednisolone Acetate | 81 | $3,942 |
| Brimonidine Tartrate-TimololBrimonidine Tartrate/Timolol | 14 | $1,828 |
| Ketorolac Tromethamine | 54 | $1,473 |
| Difluprednate | 12 | $1,371 |
| Latanoprost | 54 | $578 |
| Dorzolamide Hcl | 29 | $518 |
| Dorzolamide-TimololDorzolamide Hcl/Timolol Maleat | 38 | $238 |
| Timolol Maleate | 18 | $174 |
| Brimonidine Tartrate | 20 | $56 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other ophthalmology in Madison
- Michael ShapiroMadison$71K
- Julia AgapovMadison$26K
- Neil FarbmanMadison$13K
- Eric WeinlanderMadison$9K
- Gordon CrabtreeMadison$8K
- Paul KaufmanMadison$6K
- Andrew ThliverisMadison$5K
- Shahed GhoghawalaMadison$4K
- Sina Rashidi KikanlooMadison$4K
- Suzanne van LandinghamMadison$4K
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.