Robert Wirthlin, MD
Ophthalmology · Spokane, WANPI 1013973254
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by speaking fees: $43,856 of the $64,365 with a category attached, or 68.1%. Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. accounts for 75.3% of it on its own, with 13 other manufacturers making up the rest. 2025 is the largest year on record at $33,634, more than ten times the $563 reported in 2019. Among ophthalmology clinicians in WA 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 102 payments — averaging $631.03 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc.$48K
- Genentech USA, Inc.$11K
- AbbVie$3K
- US Retina LLC$667
- Astellas Pharma US Inc$523
- Alcon$336
- plus $540 from 8 others
Across 451 payments — averaging $5277.51 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.
- Genentech, Inc.$1.6M
- Bayer$437K
- Regeneron$154K
- F. Hoffmann-la Roche AG$117K
- Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc.$98K
- AbbVie$1K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$12,26019%
- Speaking & faculty fees$43,85668%
- Travel & lodging$4,1466%
- Food & beverage$3,4375%
- Ownership interest$6671%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. | 46 | $48,487 |
| Genentech USA, Inc. | 13 | $11,230 |
| AbbVie(2 entities) | 13 | $2,583 |
| US Retina LLC | 6 | $667 |
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 7 | $523 |
| Alcon | 6 | $336 |
| Regeneron | 3 | $181 |
| Biogen | 2 | $127 |
| Carl Zeiss Meditec, Inc. | 1 | $70 |
| Eyepoint US, Inc. | 1 | $55 |
| Novartis | 1 | $48 |
| Apellis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $33 |
| Neurotech Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $18 |
| Genentech, Inc. | 1 | $9 |
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
$64,365 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 428 ophthalmology providers in Washington.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Prednisolone Acetate | 153 | $6,648 |
| IlevroNepafenac | 16 | $5,755 |
| Difluprednate | 42 | $5,650 |
| Atropine Sulfate | 98 | $2,869 |
| Ketorolac Tromethamine | 35 | $1,555 |
| Fluorometholone | 16 | $1,118 |
| Ofloxacin | 102 | $1,085 |
| Timolol Maleate | 44 | $400 |
| Latanoprost | 11 | $357 |
| Dorzolamide-TimololDorzolamide Hcl/Timolol Maleat | 21 | $285 |
| Dorzolamide Hcl | 14 | $220 |
| ErythromycinErythromycin Base | 11 | $155 |
| Brimonidine Tartrate | 18 | $101 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| NovartisIlevro | $48 | $5,75516 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 428 ophthalmology providers in Washington.
Other ophthalmology in Spokane
- Barbara SmitSpokane$110K
- Jessica WeinsteinSpokane$9K
- Gary FillmoreSpokane$6K
- Laura PerimanSeattle$1.7M
- Sheldon CowenSeattle$560K
- Todd SchneidermanSilverdale$200K
- Jennifer ChaoSeattle$188K
- Mark KontosSpokane Valley$175K
- Audrey RostovBellevue$155K
- John SamplesOlympia$115K
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.