Veronica Franco, MD
Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiology · Gahanna, OHNPI 1962513796
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by consulting fees: $18,120 of the $24,577 with a category attached, or 73.7%. Merck accounts for 86.5% of it on its own, with 4 other manufacturers making up the rest. 2025 is the largest year on record at $12,374, 4.8 times the $2,585 reported in 2019.
Across 57 payments — averaging $431.17 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Merck$21K
- United Therapeutics Corporation$3K
- Bayer$200
- Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc.$177
- Kestra Medical Technology Services, Inc.$24
Across 209 payments — averaging $5385.18 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.
- Merck$558K
- United Therapeutics Corporation$528K
- Actelion Pharmaceuticals, Ltd$20K
- Endotronix, Inc.$12K
- Acceleron Pharma, Inc.$7K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$18,12074%
- Travel & lodging$4,79720%
- Food & beverage$1,5506%
- Education$1100%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Merck | 41 | $21,266 |
| United Therapeutics Corporation | 11 | $2,910 |
| Bayer | 1 | $200 |
| Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc. | 3 | $177 |
| Kestra Medical Technology Services, Inc. | 1 | $24 |
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
$24,577 in reported general payments places this provider in the 70th percentile of 62 advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology providers in Ohio.
See all advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology providers in Ohio →
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Orenitram ErTreprostinil Diolamine | 53 | $1,369,880 |
| UptraviSelexipag | 69 | $1,346,633 |
| AdempasRiociguat | 75 | $1,037,651 |
| WinrevairSotatercept-Csrk | 34 | $645,145 |
| Tyvaso DpiTreprostinil | 24 | $559,460 |
| Ambrisentan | 120 | $393,596 |
| OpsumitMacitentan | 14 | $177,611 |
| LetairisAmbrisentan | 13 | $167,562 |
| AdcircaTadalafil | 25 | $105,364 |
| Tadalafil | 147 | $84,679 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 75 | $82,613 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 41 | $45,530 |
| EliquisApixaban | 40 | $38,646 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 24 | $33,397 |
| Tacrolimus | 39 | $7,634 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc.Uptravi, Opsumit | $177 | $1,524,24583 claims |
| BayerAdempas | $200 | $1,037,65175 claims |
| MerckWinrevair | $21,266 | $645,14534 claims |
| United Therapeutics CorporationAdcirca | $2,910 | $105,36425 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 70th percentile of 62 advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology providers in Ohio.
Other advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology in Gahanna
- William AbrahamColumbus$802K
- Rami KahwashColumbus$379K
- Eugene ChungCincinnati$297K
- Kenneth VarianAkron$170K
- Ankit BhatiaCincinnati$141K
- Rachel GarciaCincinnati$104K
- Sateesh KesariCincinnati$101K
- Sitaramesh EmaniCincinnati$87K
- Gregory EgnaczykCincinnati$62K
- Thomas O'BrienLiberty Township$50K
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.