William Weiss, MD
Nephrology · Phoenix, AZNPI 1881686368
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 96.7% of the total across 283 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 23 manufacturers, the largest accounting for just 17.8% — the pattern of someone who eats at a lot of different presentations. Reporting peaked in 2021 at $1,628 and has fallen 60.8% since, to $639 in 2025. Among nephrology clinicians in AZ with any reported payments, this total sits in the top 10% — high for the specialty, which is a reason to read the composition above rather than the number alone.
Across 283 payments — averaging $27.30 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Amgen$1K
- AstraZeneca$1K
- Vifor Pharma, Inc.$843
- Akebia Therapeutics Inc$665
- Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc.$584
- GSK$459
- plus $3K from 17 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$7,46697%
- Education$2593%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Amgen(2 entities) | 48 | $1,374 |
| AstraZeneca(2 entities) | 46 | $1,258 |
| Vifor Pharma, Inc. | 36 | $843 |
| Akebia Therapeutics Inc | 22 | $665 |
| Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc. | 24 | $584 |
| GSK | 15 | $459 |
| OPKO Pharmaceuticals, LLC | 19 | $386 |
| Travere Therapeutics, Inc. | 7 | $366 |
| Daiichi Sankyo Inc. | 14 | $339 |
| Mallinckrodt Hospital Products Inc. | 9 | $262 |
| Ardelyx, Inc. | 6 | $229 |
| Calliditas Therapeutics US Inc. | 5 | $217 |
| Bayer | 11 | $190 |
| Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc. | 4 | $182 |
| Novartis | 4 | $88 |
| Otsuka Pharmaceutical Development & Commercialization, Inc. | 3 | $58 |
| Medtronic(2 entities) | 2 | $54 |
| Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. | 2 | $43 |
| Aurinia Pharma U.S., Inc. | 2 | $30 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 1 | $29 |
| Nxstage Medical, Inc. | 1 | $28 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 1 | $24 |
| Strongbridge US Inc. | 1 | $17 |
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
$7,725 in reported general payments places this provider in the 90th percentile of 259 nephrology providers in Arizona.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| VeltassaPatiromer Calcium Sorbitex | 113 | $108,607 |
| LokelmaSodium Zirconium Cyclosilicate | 63 | $51,609 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 36 | $38,378 |
| AuryxiaFerric Citrate | 13 | $18,100 |
| Sevelamer Carbonate | 41 | $12,720 |
| Calcitriol | 169 | $2,471 |
| Nifedipine ErNifedipine | 63 | $2,111 |
| PlenamineParenteral Amino Acid 15% No.6 | 43 | $1,974 |
| Hydralazine Hcl | 66 | $1,451 |
| Losartan Potassium | 223 | $1,434 |
| Amlodipine Besylate | 237 | $1,207 |
| Furosemide | 250 | $1,147 |
| Allopurinol | 104 | $852 |
| Labetalol Hcl | 58 | $844 |
| Carvedilol | 74 | $817 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AstraZenecaLokelma, Farxiga | $1,258 | $89,98799 claims |
| Akebia Therapeutics IncAuryxia | $665 | $18,10013 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 90th percentile of 259 nephrology providers in Arizona.
Other nephrology in Phoenix
- Samer Bani HaniPhoenix$54K
- Leslie ThomasPhoenix$22K
- Alexander NimriPhoenix$21K
- Edgardo LaurelPhoenix$15K
- Sharareh SaadatPhoenix$15K
- Amar BistaPhoenix$12K
- Maher MousaPhoenix$9K
- Paul SacksPhoenix$8K
- Esmat MustafaPhoenix$7K
- Hui ZhaoPhoenix$7K
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.