Tamera Howell, MD
Obstetrics & Gynecology · Blacksburg, VANPI 1174504773
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
The money is spread across several categories — travel and lodging (49.6%), food and beverage and education — rather than concentrated in one kind of arrangement. It is spread thinly across 29 manufacturers, the largest accounting for just 24.0%. Reporting peaked in 2022 at $4,055 and has fallen 72.4% since, to $1,119 in 2025. Among obstetrics & gynecology clinicians in VA 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 191 payments — averaging $58.00 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Momentis Surgical Inc.$3K
- Axonics, Inc.$3K
- Intuitive Surgical$2K
- Medtronic$1K
- Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc.$496
- Astellas Pharma US Inc$418
- plus $1K from 23 others
Across 11 payments — averaging $940.45 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.
- Coloplast$10K
What the payments were for
- Travel & lodging$5,49150%
- Food & beverage$4,89444%
- Education$6936%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Momentis Surgical Inc. | 13 | $2,654 |
| Axonics, Inc. | 45 | $2,632 |
| Intuitive Surgical | 19 | $2,499 |
| Medtronic | 13 | $1,057 |
| Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc. | 25 | $496 |
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 16 | $418 |
| Urovant Sciences Inc | 10 | $221 |
| AbbVie | 9 | $178 |
| Abbott | 1 | $104 |
| Novo Nordisk | 7 | $104 |
| Boston Scientific | 3 | $83 |
| Organon | 3 | $78 |
| Bayer | 3 | $76 |
| Baxter Healthcare | 1 | $71 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 4 | $58 |
| Coloplast | 2 | $58 |
| Exeltis, USA Inc. | 3 | $47 |
| Myovant Sciences Inc. | 2 | $44 |
| Mannkind Corporation | 2 | $28 |
| Pfizer | 1 | $26 |
| Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. | 1 | $23 |
| Therapeuticsmd, Inc. | 1 | $19 |
| Biogen | 1 | $17 |
| Amarin Pharma, Inc. | 1 | $17 |
| Bausch Health US, LLC | 1 | $16 |
| Amgen | 1 | $15 |
| Ascend Therapeutics US, LLC | 1 | $14 |
| Hologic Sales And Service, LLC | 1 | $14 |
| Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. | 1 | $12 |
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.
- Anovo Surgical System$2,360
- Da Vinci Surgical System$2,104
- Axonics$1,998
- Bulkamid$1,761
- MYRBETRIQ$113
- FreeStyle Libre 2$104
How this compares
$11,078 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 992 obstetrics & gynecology providers in Virginia.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| GemtesaVibegron | 197 | $167,013 |
| MyrbetriqMirabegron | 200 | $149,288 |
| Estradiol | 872 | $98,063 |
| YuvafemEstradiol | 73 | $20,598 |
| PremarinEstrogens, Conjugated | 37 | $18,539 |
| Mirabegron ErMirabegron | 28 | $16,979 |
| VeozahFezolinetant | 14 | $10,790 |
| Tolterodine Tartrate ErTolterodine Tartrate | 59 | $6,844 |
| Solifenacin Succinate | 30 | $4,883 |
| Fesoterodine Fumarate ErFesoterodine Fumarate | 34 | $2,585 |
| Estradiol-Norethindrone AcetatEstradiol/Norethindrone Acet | 27 | $2,560 |
| Metronidazole | 31 | $1,067 |
| NitrofurantoinNitrofurantoin Macrocrystal | 45 | $1,063 |
| ProgesteroneProgesterone, Micronized | 12 | $545 |
| Fluconazole | 57 | $526 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sumitomo Pharma America, Inc.Gemtesa | $496 | $167,013197 claims |
| Astellas Pharma US IncMyrbetriq, Veozah | $418 | $160,078214 claims |
| PfizerPremarin | $26 | $18,53937 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 992 obstetrics & gynecology providers in Virginia.
Other obstetrics & gynecology in Blacksburg
- Thomas KimbleNorfolk$286K
- Jack AyoubLeesburg$279K
- Kurian ThottStafford$216K
- Nina SmithHarrisonburg$199K
- Joseph TroiseSalem$144K
- Bunan AlnaifChesapeake$139K
- James JonesRichmond$134K
- Melissa DelgadoVienna$95K
- Joann PinkertonCharlottesville$35K
- Kristin SchraaMechanicsville$35K
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.