Antonio Ruiz, MD
Surgery · Elizabeth City, NCNPI 1033118518
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 100.0% of the total across 15 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 9 manufacturers reported payments, led by Merck at 29.2% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2023 at $259 and has fallen 76.9% since, to $60 in 2025. That places this record below the midpoint for surgery clinicians in NC, where the typical reported total is $1,719.
Across 15 payments — averaging $31.73 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Merck$139
- Mentor Worldwide LLC$89
- Davol Inc.$77
- Biosense Webster, Inc.$69
- Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc.$29
- Medtronic$23
- plus $50 from 3 others
Across 1 payment — averaging $3300.00 each. Payments tied to a research study. These frequently flow through the physician to a hospital or research institution rather than to the physician personally.
- Medtronic$3K
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$476100%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Merck | 2 | $139 |
| Mentor Worldwide LLC | 5 | $89 |
| Davol Inc. | 1 | $77 |
| Biosense Webster, Inc. | 1 | $69 |
| Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc. | 2 | $29 |
| Medtronic | 1 | $23 |
| Kyowa Kirin, Inc. | 1 | $22 |
| Hologic Sales And Service, LLC | 1 | $15 |
| Bard Peripheral Vascular, Inc. | 1 | $14 |
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.
- KEYTRUDA$124
How this compares
$476 in reported general payments places this provider in the 30th percentile of 970 surgery providers in North Carolina.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Tamoxifen Citrate | 15 | $273 |
| Hydrocodone-AcetaminophenHydrocodone/Acetaminophen | 33 | $95 |
| Tramadol Hcl | 14 | $25 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other surgery in Elizabeth City
- Brant HenifordCharlotte$831K
- Vedra AugensteinCharlotte$789K
- John MartinieCharlotte$712K
- Dana PortenierDurham$702K
- Paul EnochsCary$595K
- David IannittiCharlotte$360K
- William HopeWilmington$350K
- Martyn KnowlesRaleigh$311K
- Walter BoydGreenville$311K
- Gregory StanleyCharlotte$304K
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.