Karla Cruz Morel, MD
Pulmonary Disease · Columbia, SCNPI 1528346830
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
This record is dominated by speaking fees: $49,595 of the $73,912 with a category attached, or 67.1%. United Therapeutics Corporation accounts for 80.9% of it on its own, with 10 other manufacturers making up the rest. 2025 is the largest year on record at $44,502, more than ten times the $19 reported in 2019. Among pulmonary disease clinicians in SC with any reported payments, this total sits in the top 10% — high for the specialty, which is a reason to read the composition above rather than the number alone.
Across 112 payments — averaging $659.92 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- United Therapeutics Corporation$60K
- Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc.$13K
- Inari Medical, Inc.$464
- Johnson & Johnson$267
- Pulmonx Corporation$169
- Galvanize Therapeutics, Inc$148
- plus $367 from 5 others
Across 9 payments — averaging $4344.02 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.
- United Therapeutics Corporation$39K
What the payments were for
- Consulting fees$9,20012%
- Speaking & faculty fees$49,59567%
- Travel & lodging$10,82015%
- Food & beverage$4,2966%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| United Therapeutics Corporation | 72 | $59,777 |
| Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc. | 22 | $12,720 |
| Inari Medical, Inc. | 3 | $464 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 2 | $267 |
| Pulmonx Corporation | 1 | $169 |
| Galvanize Therapeutics, Inc | 1 | $148 |
| AstraZeneca | 1 | $135 |
| Merck | 6 | $134 |
| Regeneron Healthcare Solutions, Inc. | 1 | $39 |
| GSK | 2 | $30 |
| Getinge USA Sales, LLC | 1 | $28 |
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.
- UPTRAVI$12,471
- OPSUMIT$12,471
- TYVASO$7,094
- REMODULIN$4,700
- FLOWTRIEVER CATHETER, S$464
- CT THROMBECTOMY SYSTEM KIT$464
- ORENITRAM$245
- Monarch Platform$170
- CHARTIS CATHETER$169
- ZEPHYR DELIVERY CATHETER$169
- ZEPHYR ENDOBRONCHIAL VALVE$169
- PULMONX CHARTIS TABLET CONSOLE$169
- ALIYA SYSTEM$148
How this compares
$73,912 in reported general payments places this provider in the 90th percentile of 192 pulmonary disease providers in South 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Tyvaso DpiTreprostinil | 121 | $2,902,077 |
| UptraviSelexipag | 93 | $1,778,107 |
| OpsumitMacitentan | 133 | $1,658,064 |
| AdempasRiociguat | 44 | $613,663 |
| WinrevairSotatercept-Csrk | 36 | $498,226 |
| Orenitram ErTreprostinil Diolamine | 61 | $275,321 |
| OpsynviMacitentan/Tadalafil | 21 | $268,952 |
| Dupixent PenDupilumab | 65 | $259,715 |
| Ambrisentan | 72 | $214,559 |
| Tyvaso Refill KitTreprostinil/Neb Accessories | 11 | $213,820 |
| Tadalafil | 108 | $153,687 |
| Trelegy ElliptaFluticasone/Umeclidin/Vilanter | 159 | $117,843 |
| TezspireTezepelumab-Ekko | 25 | $109,250 |
| EliquisApixaban | 85 | $57,852 |
| Sildenafil Citrate | 126 | $29,702 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Companies that both paid and supply prescribed drugs
These companies both reported payments to this provider and make drugs the provider prescribed under Medicare Part D in 2024. For most specialties this overlap is expected — a cardiologist who is paid by a cardiology drugmaker also treats heart disease. It is shown so the reader can see it, not because it implies anything on its own.
| Company | Paid to this provider | Part D cost of their drugs |
|---|---|---|
| Actelion Pharmaceuticals US, Inc.Uptravi, Opsumit, Opsynvi | $12,720 | $3,705,123247 claims |
| MerckWinrevair | $134 | $498,22636 claims |
| GSKTrelegy Ellipta, Breo Ellipta, Anoro Ellipta, Incruse Ellipta, Arnuity Ellipta | $30 | $150,668241 claims |
| AstraZenecaTezspire, Breztri Aerosphere | $135 | $122,31846 claims |
| Johnson & JohnsonXarelto | $267 | $10,86914 claims |
Reading this fairly. The Part D column is what drug plans and patients paid pharmacies — this provider received none of it, and it reflects how many patients they treat and what those drugs cost. Against peers, this provider's reported payments sit in the 90th percentile of 192 pulmonary disease providers in South Carolina.
Other pulmonary disease in Columbia
- Richard BoganColumbia$1.1M
- Laura HerpelColumbia$254K
- Jake KriegmdColumbia$112K
- Mark MaysonColumbia$86K
- Gregory FeldmanColumbia$73K
- Carlton CauthenColumbia$17K
- Liang ZhaColumbia$10K
- Todd GandyColumbia$10K
- Matthew VarnerColumbia$9K
- Abhijit RavalAnderson$2M
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.