Katherine Ferren, MD
Infectious Disease · Little Rock, ARNPI 1326305590
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 98.9% of the total across 64 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 13 manufacturers reported payments, led by AbbVie at 44.8% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2023 at $473 and has fallen 55.5% since, to $211 in 2025.
Across 64 payments — averaging $18.80 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- AbbVie$539
- Merck$139
- Astellas Pharma US Inc$112
- Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Inc.$83
- Melinta Therapeutics, LLC$78
- Viiv Healthcare Company$48
- plus $204 from 7 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$1,19099%
- Education$131%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| AbbVie | 32 | $539 |
| Merck | 8 | $139 |
| Astellas Pharma US Inc | 5 | $112 |
| Paratek Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 4 | $83 |
| Melinta Therapeutics, LLC | 3 | $78 |
| Viiv Healthcare Company | 2 | $48 |
| Shionogi Inc | 2 | $44 |
| Theratechnologies Inc. | 2 | $42 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 2 | $35 |
| Insmed, Inc. | 1 | $32 |
| Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc. | 1 | $21 |
| Cumberland Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | 1 | $17 |
| La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company | 1 | $14 |
How this compares
$1,203 in reported general payments places this provider in the 75th percentile of 36 infectious disease providers in Arkansas.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Daptomycin | 47 | $104,852 |
| CeftriaxoneCeftriaxone Sodium | 97 | $12,344 |
| ErtapenemErtapenem Sodium | 13 | $5,787 |
| Vancomycin Hcl | 31 | $4,472 |
| MicafunginMicafungin Sodium | 12 | $4,212 |
| Ampicillin Sodium | 15 | $3,628 |
| Cefazolin Sodium | 19 | $1,102 |
| Sodium Chloride0.9 % Sodium Chloride | 23 | $128 |
| Levofloxacin | 13 | $114 |
| Diphenhydramine Hcl | 19 | $74 |
Paid to pharmacies, not to this prescriber.
Other infectious disease in Little Rock
- Jeremy BariolaLittle Rock$2K
- Naveen PatilLittle Rock$1K
- Mary BurgessLittle Rock$1K
- Priyenka ThapaLittle Rock$837
- Dwight LindleyLittle Rock$671
- Ryan DareLittle Rock$411
- Brandon WalserLittle Rock$219
- Jessica FrazierLittle Rock$164
- Matthew BurnsLittle Rock$135
- Rebekah ThompsonLittle Rock$123
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.