Raphael Higginbotham, MD
Nephrology · Opelousas, LANPI 1477507531
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 95.3% of the total across 296 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 25 manufacturers, the largest accounting for just 14.7% — the pattern of someone who eats at a lot of different presentations. 2025 is the largest year on record at $1,775, 4.3 times the $410 reported in 2019.
Across 296 payments — averaging $21.94 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- AstraZeneca$952
- Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.$711
- Mallinckrodt Hospital Products Inc.$660
- OPKO Pharmaceuticals, LLC$575
- Bayer$499
- Novo Nordisk$450
- plus $3K from 19 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$6,18995%
- Education$3065%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AstraZeneca(2 entities) | 43 | $952 |
| Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. | 34 | $711 |
| Mallinckrodt Hospital Products Inc. | 20 | $660 |
| OPKO Pharmaceuticals, LLC | 40 | $575 |
| Bayer | 18 | $499 |
| Novo Nordisk | 13 | $450 |
| Calliditas Therapeutics US Inc. | 19 | $442 |
| Travere Therapeutics, Inc. | 22 | $334 |
| Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc. | 16 | $317 |
| Amgen | 8 | $292 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 4 | $241 |
| ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 12 | $200 |
| Novartis | 11 | $190 |
| Vifor Pharma, Inc. | 9 | $130 |
| Akebia Therapeutics Inc | 5 | $117 |
| Ascendis Pharma Endocrinology Inc | 5 | $91 |
| Mallinckrodt Enterprises LLC | 5 | $68 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 3 | $57 |
| Ardelyx, Inc. | 1 | $33 |
| Sanofi | 2 | $31 |
| Aurinia Pharma U.S., Inc. | 2 | $25 |
| Cormedix Inc. | 1 | $24 |
| Ultragenyx Pharmaceutical Inc. | 1 | $23 |
| Kyowa Kirin, Inc. | 1 | $18 |
| 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.
How this compares
$6,495 in reported general payments places this provider in the 80th percentile of 206 nephrology providers in Louisiana.
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 | 18 | $343,294 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 328 | $277,246 |
| MounjaroTirzepatide | 142 | $155,945 |
| TrulicityDulaglutide | 121 | $147,264 |
| OzempicSemaglutide | 108 | $143,089 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 167 | $127,806 |
| VelphoroSucroferric Oxyhydroxide | 30 | $96,866 |
| RayaldeeCalcifediol | 47 | $70,646 |
| LinzessLinaclotide | 91 | $65,617 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 38 | $42,794 |
| Cinacalcet Hcl | 92 | $23,730 |
| InvokanaCanagliflozin | 15 | $22,378 |
| KerendiaFinerenone | 17 | $21,406 |
| JanuviaSitagliptin Phosphate | 45 | $21,281 |
| VeltassaPatiromer Calcium Sorbitex | 18 | $20,682 |
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 | $711 | $343,29418 claims |
| Lilly USA, LLCMounjaro, Trulicity | $57 | $303,209263 claims |
| AstraZenecaFarxiga, Lokelma | $952 | $287,663341 claims |
| Novo NordiskOzempic | $450 | $143,089108 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance, Glyxambi | $241 | $135,278180 claims |
| Fresenius USA Marketing, Inc.Velphoro | $317 | $96,86630 claims |
| OPKO Pharmaceuticals, LLCRayaldee | $575 | $70,64647 claims |
| NovartisEntresto | $190 | $42,79438 claims |
| BayerKerendia | $499 | $21,40617 claims |
| ANI Pharmaceuticals, Inc.Valsartan | $200 | $5,800279 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 80th percentile of 206 nephrology providers in Louisiana.
Other nephrology in Opelousas
- Michael LiuOpelousas$36K
- Chad RossitterOpelousas$7K
- Sreedhara AllaShreveport$722K
- Anthony BlalockLafayette$350K
- Juan Carlos VelezNew Orleans$282K
- Jones SamuelBaton Rouge$207K
- Jon MaresCovington$103K
- Raja ZabanehShreveport$57K
- Michael TouchyNew Orleans$56K
- Kenneth AbreoShreveport$42K
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.