James Howard
Neurology · Chapel Hill, NCNPI 1619082484
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by consulting fees: $211,566 of the $293,639 with a category attached, or 72.0%. 15 manufacturers reported payments, led by UCB SA at 30.5% of the total. 2025 is the largest year on record at $78,030, 8.4 times the $9,265 reported in 2019. Among neurology 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 227 payments — averaging $1293.56 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- UCB SA$89K
- Argenx US, Inc.$81K
- AstraZeneca$67K
- Regeneron$22K
- Amgen$10K
- F. Hoffmann-la Roche AG$6K
- plus $19K from 9 others
Across 164 payments — averaging $8988.52 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$658K
- Argenx US, Inc.$418K
- UCB SA$301K
- UCB Biosciences Inc.$39K
- Takeda Pharmaceuticals U.S.A., Inc.$27K
- Amgen$11K
- plus $21K from 4 others
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$211,56672%
- Speaking & faculty fees$29,54710%
- Travel & lodging$47,41216%
- Food & beverage$5,1142%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| UCB SA | 24 | $89,425 |
| Argenx US, Inc. | 65 | $80,864 |
| AstraZeneca | 56 | $66,744 |
| Regeneron | 34 | $21,626 |
| Amgen(2 entities) | 6 | $9,966 |
| F. Hoffmann-la Roche AG | 4 | $5,954 |
| UCB, Inc. | 20 | $5,379 |
| Merck Kgaa | 2 | $4,000 |
| Sanofi US Services Inc. | 2 | $3,545 |
| Vertex | 9 | $2,596 |
| H. Lundbeck A S | 1 | $2,100 |
| Biogen | 1 | $1,250 |
| Novartis | 1 | $131 |
| Sarepta Therapeutics, Inc. | 1 | $36 |
| Pfizer | 1 | $24 |
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.
How this compares
$293,639 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 566 neurology providers in North Carolina.
Most prescribed under Part D
| Drug | Claims | Cost to plans & patients |
|---|---|---|
| Mycophenolate Mofetil | 16 | $3,907 |
| Pyridostigmine Bromide | 29 | $2,079 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other neurology in Chapel Hill
- O'Neill D'cruzChapel Hill$57K
- Jill ConwayCharlotte$1M
- Matthew CarraroCharlotte$695K
- Richard SaterGreensboro$682K
- Sara SaccoMatthews$651K
- Megan DonnellyCharlotte$601K
- Kevin KahnDurham$587K
- Sanjay IyerCharlotte$581K
- Mark SkeenDurham$562K
- Douglas JefferyMooresville$486K
Where these figures come from
- Payments: CMS Open Payments, program years 2019–2025 (publication P06302026_06032026).
- Identity: NPPES NPI Registry, July 2026.