Thomas Mendler, MD
Hospitalist · Baton Rouge, LANPI 1861712895
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 100.0% of the total across 72 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 17 manufacturers, the largest accounting for just 20.9% — the pattern of someone who eats at a lot of different presentations. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $432 and has fallen 65.9% since, to $148 in 2024.
Across 72 payments — averaging $16.96 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Johnson & Johnson$255
- Novartis$248
- Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.$125
- Pfizer$95
- Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC$81
- Merck$66
- plus $353 from 11 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$1,221100%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Johnson & Johnson | 15 | $255 |
| Novartis | 14 | $248 |
| Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. | 6 | $125 |
| Pfizer | 6 | $95 |
| Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC | 4 | $81 |
| Merck | 4 | $66 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 4 | $58 |
| Shire North American Group Inc | 4 | $53 |
| GSK | 4 | $50 |
| AstraZeneca | 2 | $45 |
| AbbVie | 2 | $32 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 2 | $26 |
| EUSA Pharma (US) LLC | 1 | $24 |
| Amgen | 1 | $18 |
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 1 | $18 |
| Melinta Therapeutics, LLC | 1 | $15 |
| Vifor Pharma, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
How this compares
$1,221 in reported general payments places this provider in the 85th percentile of 301 hospitalist 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Cefdinir | 11 | $154 |
| Furosemide | 13 | $36 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other hospitalist in Baton Rouge
- David MickeyBaton Rouge$6K
- Haroon MujahidBaton Rouge$4K
- Robert CauseyBaton Rouge$2K
- Brandi FontenotBaton Rouge$2K
- Brian GouriBaton Rouge$2K
- Melanie McKnightBaton Rouge$2K
- Kevin DeanBaton Rouge$2K
- Brandon HoweBaton Rouge$2K
- Amy GiarrussoBaton Rouge$2K
- Joe Marie DizonBaton Rouge$2K
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.