Christopher Spiker, MD
Internal Medicine · Birmingham, ALNPI 1508125782
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 100.0% of the total across 27 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 6 manufacturers reported payments, led by Johnson & Johnson at 37.6% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2019 at $93 and has fallen 82.9% since, to $16 in 2025. That places this record below the midpoint for internal medicine clinicians in AL, where the typical reported total is $372.
Across 27 payments — averaging $18.45 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Johnson & Johnson$187
- E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C.$112
- Pfizer$104
- Novartis$55
- Portola Pharmaceuticals, LLC$22
- GSK$18
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$498100%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Johnson & Johnson | 10 | $187 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 7 | $112 |
| Pfizer | 5 | $104 |
| Novartis | 3 | $55 |
| Portola Pharmaceuticals, LLC | 1 | $22 |
| GSK | 1 | $18 |
How this compares
$498 in reported general payments places this provider in the 50th 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Prednisone | 13 | $41 |
| Levofloxacin | 11 | $31 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
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.