David Harpole, MD
Thoracic Surgery (Cardiothoracic Vascular Surgery) · Durham, NCNPI 1386734564
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by consulting fees: $112,197 of the $177,348 with a category attached, or 63.3%. 6 manufacturers reported payments, led by Astrazeneca UK Limited at 57.7% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2023 at $56,058 and has fallen 79.6% since, to $11,422 in 2025. Among thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) clinicians in NC with any reported payments, this total sits in the top 5% — high for the specialty, which is a reason to read the composition above rather than the number alone.
Across 116 payments — averaging $1528.86 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Astrazeneca UK Limited$102K
- AstraZeneca$51K
- Astrazeneca AB$10K
- Covidien LP$9K
- Novartis$3K
- Eli Lilly$2K
Across 1 payment — averaging $34,073 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.
- Astrazeneca UK Limited$34K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$112,19763%
- Speaking & faculty fees$8,5005%
- Travel & lodging$54,50631%
- Food & beverage$2,1451%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Astrazeneca UK Limited | 60 | $102,265 |
| AstraZeneca | 41 | $51,121 |
| Astrazeneca AB | 8 | $9,904 |
| Covidien LP | 3 | $9,356 |
| Novartis | 3 | $2,902 |
| Eli Lilly | 1 | $1,800 |
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.
- TAGRISSO$47,843
- IMFINZI$29,481
- ILARIS$2,803
- superDimension$800
How this compares
$177,348 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 132 thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) providers in North Carolina.
See all thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular 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.
Other thoracic surgery (cardiothoracic vascular surgery) in Durham
- Matthew HartwigDurham$406K
- Thomas D AmicoDurham$94K
- Stafford BaldersonDurham$25K
- Herbert LyerlyDurham$24K
- Betty TongDurham$16K
- Hai SalfityDurham$15K
- Sara NajmehDurham$8K
- Joseph RubelowskyRaleigh$2.2M
- Gregory SmaroffNew Bern$205K
- Carmelo MilanoLumberton$169K
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.