Xiangsheng Zheng, MD
Internal Medicine · Birmingham, ALNPI 1396861332
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by consulting fees: $6,277 of the $9,668 with a category attached, or 64.9%. Sanofi accounts for 73.7% of it on its own, with 10 other manufacturers making up the rest. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $7,127 and has fallen 85.7% since, to $1,022 in 2025. Among internal medicine clinicians in AL 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 99 payments — averaging $97.65 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Sanofi$7K
- Bayer$784
- Boehringer Ingelheim$459
- Amarin Pharma, Inc.$406
- Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc.$365
- Madrigal Pharmaceuticals$132
- plus $395 from 5 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$6,27765%
- Travel & lodging$6577%
- Food & beverage$2,68928%
- Education$450%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sanofi | 8 | $7,127 |
| Bayer | 32 | $784 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 12 | $459 |
| Amarin Pharma, Inc. | 19 | $406 |
| Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc. | 15 | $365 |
| Madrigal Pharmaceuticals | 1 | $132 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 1 | $109 |
| AbbVie | 5 | $103 |
| Medtronic | 1 | $98 |
| IBSA Pharma Inc. | 3 | $48 |
| Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc. | 2 | $37 |
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
$9,668 in reported general payments places this provider in the 90th percentile of 1,533 internal medicine providers in Alabama.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Diclofenac Epolamine | 2,978 | $2,175,567 |
| VascepaIcosapent Ethyl | 2,851 | $1,016,082 |
| RestasisCyclosporine | 1,421 | $920,571 |
| Omeprazole-Sodium BicarbonateOmeprazole/Sodium Bicarbonate | 757 | $893,200 |
| JanuviaSitagliptin Phosphate | 1,101 | $634,431 |
| Diclofenac Sodium | 877 | $565,168 |
| CreonLipase/Protease/Amylase | 299 | $371,891 |
| RybelsusSemaglutide | 349 | $344,075 |
| VemlidyTenofovir Alafenamide | 223 | $315,742 |
| Clobetasol Propionate | 1,443 | $249,772 |
| LinzessLinaclotide | 406 | $214,714 |
| Dexlansoprazole DrDexlansoprazole | 1,006 | $158,749 |
| Combivent RespimatIpratropium/Albuterol Sulfate | 299 | $141,899 |
| Lactulose | 76 | $141,307 |
| Halobetasol Propionate | 1,296 | $110,705 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AbbVieRestasis, Creon, Linzess, Synthroid | $103 | $1,532,7212,618 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimCombivent Respimat, Jardiance, Tradjenta | $459 | $262,050494 claims |
| BayerKerendia | $784 | $103,453151 claims |
| Lilly USA, LLCTrulicity | $109 | $37,58926 claims |
| Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc.Zenpep | $37 | $31,84042 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 1,533 internal medicine providers in Alabama.
Other internal medicine in Birmingham
- Ryan WeldonBirmingham$458K
- Robert LewisBirmingham$187K
- Thomas HuddleBirmingham$76K
- Jose VargasBirmingham$49K
- Donna FicoBirmingham$46K
- James SullivanBirmingham$39K
- Ross SchumacherBirmingham$26K
- Larry AlfordBirmingham$25K
- David WynneBirmingham$22K
- James CrenshawBirmingham$16K
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.