Victor Howard, MD
Gastroenterology · Lexington, KYNPI 1740573286
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 99.6% of the total across 683 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 36 manufacturers reported payments, led by AbbVie at 25.7% of the total. 2025 is the largest year on record at $3,102, 2.6 times the $1,200 reported in 2019.
Across 683 payments — averaging $16.88 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- AbbVie$3K
- Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC$2K
- Johnson & Johnson$1K
- Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc.$858
- Pfizer$407
- QOL Medical, LLC$377
- plus $3K from 30 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$260%
- Food & beverage$11,490100%
- Education$160%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AbbVie(2 entities) | 178 | $2,963 |
| Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC | 141 | $2,293 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 79 | $1,312 |
| Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. | 49 | $858 |
| Pfizer | 24 | $407 |
| QOL Medical, LLC | 19 | $377 |
| Sanofi | 19 | $352 |
| Ardelyx, Inc. | 18 | $313 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 12 | $257 |
| Intercept Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 13 | $250 |
| Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. | 13 | $246 |
| Phathom Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 22 | $244 |
| Ironwood Pharmaceuticals, Inc | 14 | $230 |
| Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 12 | $226 |
| Madrigal Pharmaceuticals | 10 | $211 |
| Gilead | 6 | $121 |
| Merck | 8 | $115 |
| Nestle Healthcare Nutrition Inc. | 6 | $109 |
| Bristol Myers Squibb | 5 | $92 |
| Redhill Biopharma Inc. | 5 | $75 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 4 | $72 |
| Shionogi Inc | 4 | $64 |
| Braintree Laboratories, Inc. | 4 | $60 |
| Celltrion USA Inc. | 3 | $56 |
| Ipsen Biopharmaceuticals, Inc | 2 | $31 |
| Romark Laboratories, LC | 3 | $25 |
| Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc. | 1 | $23 |
| Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 1 | $21 |
| Medtronic | 1 | $19 |
| Ambu Inc. | 1 | $17 |
| Organon | 1 | $17 |
| Pharmacosmos Therapeutics Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| Fresenius Kabi USA, LLC | 1 | $15 |
| Evoke Pharma, Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| AstraZeneca | 1 | $15 |
| Azurity Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
How this compares
$11,532 in reported general payments places this provider in the 80th percentile of 207 gastroenterology providers in Kentucky.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| XifaxanRifaximin | 14 | $41,865 |
| CreonLipase/Protease/Amylase | 15 | $33,231 |
| ClenpiqSod Picosulf/Mag Ox/Citric Ac | 184 | $31,657 |
| LinzessLinaclotide | 33 | $31,163 |
| Sod Sulf-Potass Sulf-Mag SulfSodium, Potassium,mag Sulfates | 113 | $7,429 |
| Mesalamine ErMesalamine | 12 | $5,786 |
| Ursodiol | 14 | $5,726 |
| Pantoprazole Sodium | 168 | $2,937 |
| Budesonide DrBudesonide | 13 | $2,350 |
| SutabSod Sulf/Pot Chloride/Mag Sulf | 13 | $2,113 |
| Esomeprazole Magnesium | 43 | $1,424 |
| Peg3350-Sod Sul-Nacl-Kcl-Asb-CPeg3350/Sod Sul/Nacl/Kcl/Asb/C | 14 | $1,158 |
| Gavilyte-GPeg3350/Sod Sulf,bicarb,cl/Kcl | 83 | $931 |
| Peg-3350 And ElectrolytesPeg3350/Sod Sulf,bicarb,cl/Kcl | 45 | $347 |
| Dicyclomine Hcl | 16 | $165 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AbbVieCreon, Linzess | $2,963 | $64,39548 claims |
| Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLCXifaxan | $2,293 | $41,86514 claims |
| Ferring Pharmaceuticals Inc.Clenpiq | $226 | $31,657184 claims |
| Braintree Laboratories, Inc.Sutab | $60 | $2,11313 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 80th percentile of 207 gastroenterology providers in Kentucky.
Other gastroenterology in Lexington
- Terrence BarrettLexington$57K
- An-Yu ChenLexington$25K
- Kathleen MartinLexington$23K
- Gregory WoolfolkLexington$19K
- Matthew AshmunLexington$19K
- Deborah FlomenhoftLexington$18K
- Scott MerkleyLexington$18K
- James PezziLexington$15K
- Adalberto CastellanosLexington$13K
- June YongLexington$12K
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.