Richard Sterling, MD
Otolaryngology · Philadelphia, PANPI 1184712895
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 100.0% of the total across 20 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 9 manufacturers reported payments, led by Stryker at 41.6% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2022 at $279 and has fallen 54.9% since, to $126 in 2024. That places this record below the midpoint for otolaryngology clinicians in PA, where the typical reported total is $881.
Across 20 payments — averaging $36.56 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Stryker$304
- GSK$122
- Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc.$109
- Optinose US, Inc.$90
- Smith+Nephew$29
- Pfizer$26
- plus $51 from 3 others
Across 43 payments — averaging $8771.96 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.
- GSK$227K
- Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc.$137K
- Chiesi USA, Inc.$12K
- Mylan Specialty L.p.$1K
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$731100%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Stryker | 5 | $304 |
| GSK | 2 | $122 |
| Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. | 1 | $109 |
| Optinose US, Inc. | 6 | $90 |
| Smith+Nephew | 1 | $29 |
| Pfizer | 2 | $26 |
| Intersect ENT, Inc. | 1 | $18 |
| Acclarent, Inc | 1 | $16 |
| AbbVie | 1 | $16 |
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.
- FIAGON NAVIGATION UNIT$123
- DUPIXENT$109
- NUCALA$105
How this compares
$731 in reported general payments places this provider in the 45th percentile of 456 otolaryngology providers in Pennsylvania.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Ipratropium Bromide | 92 | $4,408 |
| Azelastine Hcl | 64 | $1,982 |
| Fluocinolone Acetonide Oil | 19 | $1,108 |
| Fluticasone Propionate | 57 | $889 |
| Ofloxacin | 15 | $545 |
| Amoxicillin-Clavulanate PotassAmoxicillin/Potassium Clav | 37 | $436 |
| Famotidine | 57 | $237 |
| Doxycycline Hyclate | 31 | $208 |
| Prednisone | 30 | $197 |
| Sulfamethoxazole-TrimethoprimSulfamethoxazole/Trimethoprim | 13 | $61 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other otolaryngology in Philadelphia
- Nancy SnydermanPhiladelphia$4.5M
- David KennedyPhiladelphia$603K
- James PalmerPhiladelphia$331K
- Mathew NagorskyPhiladelphia$95K
- Noam CohenPhiladelphia$76K
- Nithin AdappaPhiladelphia$72K
- Steven CannadyPhiladelphia$33K
- David CognettiPhiladelphia$30K
- John KrousePhiladelphia$30K
- Soo AbboudPhiladelphia$23K
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.