Michael Wiederkehr, MD
Nephrology · Dallas, TXNPI 1932153681
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — speaking fees (54.0%), consulting fees and food and beverage — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. accounts for 64.5% of it on its own, with 31 other manufacturers making up the rest. 2025 is the largest year on record at $17,544, 4.6 times the $3,840 reported in 2019. Among nephrology clinicians in TX 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 354 payments — averaging $231.93 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.$53K
- Vertex$10K
- Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc.$8K
- AstraZeneca$3K
- Mallinckrodt Enterprises LLC$3K
- Sanofi$1K
- plus $4K from 26 others
Across 3 payments — averaging $8966.67 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.
- AbbVie$15K
- Aurinia Pharma U.S., Inc.$12K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$27,17033%
- Speaking & faculty fees$44,32654%
- Travel & lodging$2,0252%
- Food & beverage$8,42110%
- Education$1610%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. | 67 | $52,964 |
| Vertex | 6 | $9,766 |
| Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc. | 15 | $7,993 |
| AstraZeneca(2 entities) | 99 | $3,036 |
| Mallinckrodt Enterprises LLC | 6 | $2,689 |
| Sanofi | 2 | $1,252 |
| Veloxis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 26 | $625 |
| Vifor Pharma, Inc. | 22 | $606 |
| Nxstage Medical, Inc. | 12 | $575 |
| OPKO Pharmaceuticals, LLC | 21 | $391 |
| Bayer | 5 | $268 |
| Calliditas Therapeutics US Inc. | 3 | $257 |
| Novartis | 6 | $248 |
| Amgen(2 entities) | 6 | $231 |
| Cormedix Inc. | 9 | $226 |
| Travere Therapeutics, Inc. | 11 | $184 |
| Johnson & Johnson(2 entities) | 11 | $183 |
| Otsuka Pharmaceutical Development & Commercialization, Inc. | 3 | $152 |
| La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company | 3 | $64 |
| Aurinia Pharma U.S., Inc. | 3 | $63 |
| Genentech USA, Inc. | 3 | $55 |
| GSK | 3 | $54 |
| Novo Nordisk | 2 | $46 |
| Mallinckrodt Hospital Products Inc. | 1 | $25 |
| Akebia Therapeutics Inc | 2 | $24 |
| Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 1 | $23 |
| Ardelyx, Inc. | 1 | $23 |
| Shire North American Group Inc | 1 | $17 |
| ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $17 |
| Vantive US Healthcare LLC | 1 | $16 |
| Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical 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.
How this compares
$82,102 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 1,070 nephrology providers in Texas.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| JynarqueTolvaptan | 13 | $258,502 |
| VelphoroSucroferric Oxyhydroxide | 34 | $114,546 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 91 | $107,035 |
| AuryxiaFerric Citrate | 14 | $30,601 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 35 | $25,360 |
| OzempicSemaglutide | 14 | $13,676 |
| Sevelamer Carbonate | 35 | $7,350 |
| Nifedipine ErNifedipine | 84 | $4,282 |
| Calcium Acetate | 25 | $4,042 |
| Torsemide | 161 | $2,899 |
| Potassium Citrate ErPotassium Citrate | 20 | $2,862 |
| Terazosin Hcl | 71 | $1,792 |
| Losartan Potassium | 89 | $1,211 |
| Calcitriol | 46 | $1,083 |
| Carvedilol | 106 | $1,032 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.Jynarque | $52,964 | $258,50213 claims |
| Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc.Velphoro | $7,993 | $114,54634 claims |
| AstraZenecaFarxiga | $3,036 | $107,03591 claims |
| Akebia Therapeutics IncAuryxia | $24 | $30,60114 claims |
| Novo NordiskOzempic | $46 | $13,67614 claims |
| ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc.Valsartan | $17 | $19016 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 1,070 nephrology providers in Texas.
Other nephrology in Dallas
- Ankit MehtaDallas$1.1M
- Biff PalmerDallas$867K
- Gates ColbertDallas$828K
- Irfan AghaDallas$415K
- Russell SilversteinDallas$204K
- Sumit KumarDallas$166K
- Christopher HebertDallas$102K
- Robert TotoDallas$87K
- Samir ParikhDallas$72K
- Joseph LockridgeDallas$55K
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.