Dr. Paul Rizzoli, MD
Not yet claimedNeurologist · Physician (MD)
Boston, MA
Dr. Paul B. Rizzoli is listed as a neurologist at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, MA, with a focus on headache. His profile has not yet been verified by our review team.
About Dr. Paul Rizzoli, MD
Updated Sep 20, 2026 · next review Dec 19, 2026Dr. Paul B. Rizzoli is a neurologist in Boston, Massachusetts who specializes in headache medicine. He practices with Mass General Brigham and is affiliated with Brigham and Women's Hospital and Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital.
He is Chief of the Division of Headache and Pain in the Department of Neurology and Clinical Director of the John R. Graham Headache Center at Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital. He previously directed the headache fellowship training program there, and he teaches at Harvard Medical School.
He earned his medical degree from George Washington University School of Medicine in 1978, trained in internal medicine at Roger Williams Medical Center in Rhode Island, and completed neurology residency training in the Harvard system, including Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Brigham and Women's Hospital. He is described as a board-certified neurologist and publishes in the medical literature on headache.
Federal Open Payments records list $7,879.81 in payments from drug and device companies to him across 14 records from 2021 to 2025, with the largest amounts from Axsome Therapeutics and AbbVie. Payments from industry to physicians are common and legal, and are reported publicly by Medicare.
- Headache medicine focus
- Mass General Brigham lists him as a physician specializing in neurology and headache medicine, seeing patients in Boston. massgeneralbrigham.org
- Division chief and center director
- He is Chief of the Division of Headache and Pain in the Department of Neurology and Clinical Director of the John R. Graham Headache Center at Brigham and Women's Faulkner Hospital. physiciandirectory.brighamandwomens.org
- Headache fellowship leadership
- The Brigham and Women's Faulkner headache fellowship page lists him as Chief of the Division of Headache and Pain; he previously directed the fellowship training program. brighamandwomensfaulkner.org
- Medical school and residencies
- He received his MD from George Washington University School of Medicine in 1978 and completed internal medicine training at Roger Williams Medical Center and neurology training at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Brigham and Women's Hospital. doximity.com
- Harvard Medical School faculty
- He holds a teaching appointment in neurology at Harvard Medical School and has a Harvard Catalyst research profile. connects.catalyst.harvard.edu
- Published headache researcher
- He has a Google Scholar citation profile and is listed as an author in the journal Headache with ORCID iD 0000-0001-7278-3110. scholar.google.com
- Industry payments reported
- CMS Open Payments shows $7,879.81 across 14 records from 2021 to 2025, led by Axsome Therapeutics ($3,828.35) and AbbVie ($3,059.64), with smaller amounts from Lilly, Allergan, and Lundbeck. openpaymentsdata.cms.gov
Worth knowing
- Licensure details found in the research (an active Massachusetts license through 2027 and a New Jersey license that lapsed in 1995) come from a directory aggregator rather than a state medical board, so patients may want to confirm current licensure directly with the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine. health.usnews.com
- Some online directories list him as an 'internist in Jamaica Plain,' which reflects his earlier internal medicine training and the Faulkner Hospital address; his current listed specialty is neurology and headache medicine. npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov
- His X (Twitter) account is protected, so its posts can only be seen by approved followers. twitter.com
Industry payments (CMS Open Payments)
Open the CMS recordFederal law requires drug and device companies to report what they pay clinicians: meals, travel, speaking, consulting, and research. Payments are common and legal; the point is that you can see them.
2021 to 2025
$7,880
14 payments
| 2021 | $825 |
| 2022 | $0 |
| 2023 | $0 |
| 2024 | $2,507 |
| 2025 | $4,548 |
Top payers
- Axsome Therapeutics, Inc.$3,828
- ABBVIE INC.$3,060
- Lilly USA, LLC$525
- Allergan, Inc.$300
- Lundbeck LLC$167
Payment types
- Consulting Fee$3,300
- Honoraria$3,263
- Travel and Lodging$978
- Food and Beverage$339
A word of caution about these numbers
A payment does not mean your doctor is compromised or acting unethically. Most of these entries are drug samples left for patients, or lunch brought in for the office staff, and the amounts are usually small. Research funding and speaking at medical meetings are also normal parts of a clinical career.
As a rough guide, a total under $15,000 a year is usually not a concern. Much larger sums, especially from one company whose product your doctor recommends to you, are worth asking about. You are allowed to ask.
Sources: physiciandirectory.brighamandwomens.org · massgeneralbrigham.org · doctors.massgeneralbrigham.org · npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov · connects.catalyst.harvard.edu · scholar.google.com · headachejournal.onlinelibrary.wiley.com · linkedin.com. Something wrong or out of date? Tell us and we will correct it.
Summary prepared with AI assistance from the public sources linked above, reviewed every three months. It is not a review, a rating, or an endorsement.
Practice location
Brigham and Women's Hospital
1153 Centre St
Boston, MA 02130
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