Michael Galgano, MD
Neurological Surgery · Chapel Hill, NCNPI 1225357098
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — speaking fees (50.6%), consulting fees and travel and lodging — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. Medtronic accounts for 92.6% of it on its own, with 6 other manufacturers making up the rest. Reporting peaked in 2022 at $56,150 and has fallen 98.6% since, to $774 in 2025. Among neurological surgery clinicians in NC with any reported payments, this total sits in the top 10% — high for the specialty, which is a reason to read the composition above rather than the number alone.
Across 174 payments — averaging $839.02 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Medtronic$135K
- BK Medical Holding Company Inc.$7K
- Icotec Medical Inc.$3K
- Globus Medical$611
- Orthofix Medical, Inc.$117
- Boston Scientific$117
- plus $112 from 1 others
Across 3 payments — averaging $6976.67 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.
- Medtronic$21K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$56,45039%
- Speaking & faculty fees$73,83051%
- Travel & lodging$9,1556%
- Food & beverage$6,5544%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Medtronic(2 entities) | 158 | $135,156 |
| BK Medical Holding Company Inc. | 2 | $7,325 |
| Icotec Medical Inc. | 7 | $2,551 |
| Globus Medical(2 entities) | 4 | $611 |
| Orthofix Medical, Inc. | 1 | $117 |
| Boston Scientific | 1 | $117 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 1 | $112 |
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.
- CD HORIZON SPINAL SYSTEM$80,925
- MAZOR X SYSTEM$20,394
- T2 STRATOSPHERE$18,705
- bk3000, bk3500 & bk5000 Ultrasound System$7,325
- CD HORIZON$6,855
- icotec BlackArmor Spine System$1,500
- icotec Medical BlackArmor Spine Oncology System$824
- ELSA ATP$392
- RELINE$171
- PRESTIGE$159
- O-ARM$156
- UNID_PASS$145
- ELEVATE$127
- Cervical-Stim Osteogenesis Stimulator$117
- Spinal-Stim Osteogenesis Stimulator$117
- Intracept$117
- Spine & Trauma 3D Navigation$112
- VADER PEDICLE SYSTEM 6.0, SCREW, Carbon/PEEK, POLYAX., FEN., O 5.5 X 45 MM$111
- VADER PEDICLE SYSTEM, ROD, Carbon/PEEK, CURVED, 6.0 R450 X 200 MM$111
- KONG-TL VBR E, EXPANDABLE BODY, L, 19 MM X 27 - 37 MM$111
How this compares
$145,989 in reported general payments places this provider in the 90th percentile of 196 neurological surgery providers in North Carolina.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Oxycodone Hcl | 17 | $94 |
| Tizanidine Hcl | 11 | $75 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other neurological surgery in Chapel Hill
- Vibhor KrishnaChapel Hill$91K
- Deb BhowmickChapel Hill$91K
- Joshua LoewensteinChapel Hill$40K
- Cheerag UpadhyayaChapel Hill$28K
- Robert IsaacsDurham$6.6M
- Christopher ShaffreyDurham$4.5M
- Domagoj CoricCharlotte$2.3M
- John ThomasWilmington$1.8M
- Alexander PowersKernersville$1.7M
- Charles BranchAdvance$1.6M
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.