Dr. Brian Helfand, M.D./PH.D.
What this data tells you about Dr. Helfand
Dr. Brian Helfand is an urology physician in Chicago, IL, with 18 years of NPI registration. Based on federal Medicare data, Dr. Helfand performed 1,978 Medicare services across 1,782 unique beneficiaries.
Between the years covered by Open Payments, Dr. Helfand received a total of $357,877 from 20 pharmaceutical and/or device companies across 413 individual payments. These payments are legal, publicly disclosed under the federal Sunshine Act, and common in urology physician. The majority of payments are for consulting, which typically reflects recognized clinical expertise sought by manufacturers. Patients may wish to discuss these relationships with their provider.
The Data Coverage level for Dr. Helfand is Very High — reflecting how much public federal data is available about this provider. Patients are encouraged to use this data as one of several factors when choosing a healthcare provider.
Medicare Practice Summary
Medicare Utilization ↗Top procedures by volume
Ranked by number of services performed for Medicare patients. Avg. submitted charge is what the provider billed; avg. Medicare payment is what CMS paid.
| Procedure | Volume | Avg. paid | Avg. submitted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Office visit, established patient (20-29 min) An office visit for an existing patient lasting between 20 and 29 minutes. The visit involves medical evaluation and management of the patient's condition. |
650 | $46 | $77 |
| Office visit, established patient (30-39 min) A follow-up office visit for an existing patient lasting between 30 and 39 minutes. The visit involves medical evaluation and management of the patient's condition. |
258 | $74 | $155 |
| Hospital follow-up visit, low complexity Follow-up hospital visit for an established patient with straightforward or low-level medical decision making. The visit requires at least 25 minutes of time spent on the day of service. |
186 | $42 | $93 |
| Office visit, established patient, complex (40-54 min) An office or outpatient visit for an existing patient lasting between 40 and 54 minutes. This level of service is determined by the total time spent on the date of the encounter. |
123 | $117 | $271 |
| Ultrasound guidance for needle placement Use of ultrasound imaging to guide the precise placement of a needle during a medical procedure. |
104 | $24 | $107 |
| Prostate gland biopsy A procedure to remove small samples of tissue from the prostate gland for laboratory examination. |
103 | $106 | $305 |
| Electronic assessment of bladder emptying A test that uses electronic monitoring to evaluate how well the bladder empties urine. |
97 | $7 | $20 |
| New patient office visit, complex (60-74 min) | 81 | $137 | $364 |
| Waterjet prostate destruction via urethra A procedure that uses a high-pressure water jet to destroy prostate tissue, accessed through the urethra. |
64 | $667 | $2,856 |
| Cystourethroscopy A diagnostic exam of the bladder and urethra using an endoscope to visually inspect the urinary tract. |
56 | $62 | $190 |
| Prolonged office E/M service, first 15 minutes This code is used for additional time spent by a physician beyond the maximum required time of a primary office or outpatient evaluation and management service. It is billed in 15-minute increments based on total time spent on the date of the primary service. |
53 | $25 | $72 |
| Initial hospital admission, low complexity Initial hospital inpatient or observation care for a new patient involving straightforward or low-level medical decision making, with at least 40 minutes total time on the date of the encounter. |
35 | $69 | $227 |
| New patient office visit (45-59 min) An initial office visit for a new patient lasting between 45 and 59 minutes. This code covers the total time spent by the physician or qualified healthcare professional on the date of the encounter. |
34 | $86 | $246 |
| Surgical removal of prostate and lymph nodes This procedure involves the surgical removal of the prostate gland and surrounding lymph nodes using an endoscope. |
29 | $1,014 | $10,754 |
| Ureteral stent insertion via endoscope A flexible tube is inserted into the ureter using an endoscope to keep the passage open and allow urine to flow from the kidney to the bladder. |
26 | $131 | $1,149 |
| Cystoscopy with chemical ablation of bladder A procedure where a camera is used to examine the bladder and a chemical agent is applied to destroy abnormal tissue. |
21 | $144 | $399 |
| Endoscopic removal of pelvic lymph nodes, bilateral A surgical procedure to remove lymph nodes from both sides of the pelvis using an endoscope. This minimally invasive technique involves making small incisions to access and excise the tissue. |
15 | $283 | $2,690 |
| Laparoscopic pelvic lymph node removal and abdominal biopsy A minimally invasive surgical procedure to remove lymph nodes from both sides of the pelvis and obtain a tissue sample from abdominal lymph nodes using an endoscope. |
15 | $423 | $3,310 |
| Hospital follow-up visit, moderate complexity Follow-up hospital visit for an existing patient involving moderate medical decision making. The visit requires at least 35 minutes of time spent on the date of service. |
14 | $68 | $160 |
| Emergency department visit, low level of medical decision making An emergency department visit for a patient requiring a low level of medical decision making. |
14 | $63 | $161 |
Industry Payment Transparency
Open Payments through 2024 ↗Payment profile
Industry payments classified by relationship type. Not all payments are equal — research and consulting reflect different relationships than speaking programs or meals.
Payment trend by year
Annual totals from pharmaceutical and medical device companies.
Payments by company (2024)
All-time payments by company (2018-2024) ›
Associated products mentioned in payments ›
The majority of payments (87%) are consulting fees, which typically reflect recognized clinical expertise sought by manufacturers. Total industry engagement is in the top 1% for urology physician in IL.
Geographic Context
0.0 mi
Data Sources
| Provider Registry | ✓ NPPES | Weekly updates |
| Medicare Enrollment | ✓ PECOS | Monthly updates |
| Practice Data | ✓ Medicare Util. | Annual (CY lag) |
| Industry Payments | ✓ Open Payments | CY 2024 |
| Disciplinary History | — Not public | N/A |
This provider has data in 4 of 4 available federal datasets, with a Data Coverage level of Very High. This reflects how much public data is available about a provider. How we calculate this →
Summary
Dr. Helfand is a clinical cardiology specialist, with moderate Medicare volume, with consulting-driven industry engagement in the top 1% of IL peers, with 18 years of NPI registration.
This summary is auto-generated from federal data, describing data availability and patterns. Read our methodology →
Frequently Asked Questions
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All data on this page is sourced verbatim from public federal records published by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS): NPPES ↗, Open Payments ↗, Medicare Provider Utilization ↗, and PECOS. Publication is mandated by the Physician Payments Sunshine Act (§6002 ACA, 42 U.S.C. §1320a-7h) and the Freedom of Information Act.
This page is not medical advice, an endorsement, a recommendation, or a quality rating. Data Coverage reflects data completeness — how much federal information exists for this provider — not clinical performance, patient outcomes, or quality of care. Always verify information directly with the provider and consult a licensed clinician before making medical decisions.
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