Laura Ekka, MD
Pediatrics · Garner, NCNPI 1649599598
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 100.0% of the total across 57 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 16 manufacturers reported payments, led by Novo Nordisk at 41.3% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2022 at $346 and has fallen 88.8% since, to $39 in 2024.
Across 57 payments — averaging $14.86 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Novo Nordisk$350
- Lilly USA, LLC$96
- AstraZeneca$80
- Amgen$76
- Senseonics, Incorporated$37
- Boehringer Ingelheim$31
- plus $178 from 10 others
Across 22 payments — averaging $2726.72 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.
- Novo Nordisk AS$60K
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$847100%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Novo Nordisk | 26 | $350 |
| Lilly USA, LLC | 5 | $96 |
| AstraZeneca | 6 | $80 |
| Amgen | 5 | $76 |
| Senseonics, Incorporated | 1 | $37 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 2 | $31 |
| Mannkind Corporation | 2 | $30 |
| Johnson & Johnson | 2 | $25 |
| Zealand Pharma US, Inc. | 1 | $20 |
| Sanofi-aventis U.S. LLC | 1 | $18 |
| Dexcom, Inc. | 1 | $16 |
| AbbVie | 1 | $16 |
| Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. | 1 | $15 |
| GSK | 1 | $14 |
| Biohaven Pharmaceutical Holding Company Ltd. | 1 | $12 |
| Dynavax Technologies Corporation | 1 | $10 |
How this compares
$847 in reported general payments places this provider in the 80th percentile of 1,818 pediatrics 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.
Most prescribed under Part D
| Drug | Claims | Cost to plans & patients |
|---|---|---|
| OzempicSemaglutide | 95 | $112,361 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 52 | $84,577 |
| EliquisApixaban | 29 | $37,415 |
| RybelsusSemaglutide | 21 | $36,858 |
| Tresiba Flextouch U-100Insulin Degludec | 16 | $7,848 |
| Combivent RespimatIpratropium/Albuterol Sulfate | 13 | $6,236 |
| Anoro ElliptaUmeclidinium Brm/Vilanterol Tr | 13 | $5,758 |
| Advair HfaFluticasone Propion/Salmeterol | 12 | $3,547 |
| SynthroidLevothyroxine Sodium | 26 | $2,570 |
| Rosuvastatin Calcium | 198 | $2,281 |
| Arnuity ElliptaFluticasone Furoate | 11 | $2,258 |
| Atorvastatin Calcium | 166 | $1,587 |
| Famotidine | 73 | $1,476 |
| Amlodipine Besylate | 176 | $1,465 |
| Omeprazole | 93 | $1,441 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Novo NordiskOzempic, Rybelsus | $350 | $149,219116 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance, Combivent Respimat | $31 | $90,81365 claims |
| GSKAnoro Ellipta, Arnuity Ellipta | $14 | $8,01624 claims |
| AbbVieSynthroid | $16 | $2,57026 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 80th percentile of 1,818 pediatrics providers in North Carolina.
Other pediatrics in Garner
- Dwight KoeberlDurham$8.4M
- Priya KishnaniDurham$5.8M
- James AndersonHigh Point$669K
- Joseph MuenzerChapel Hill$237K
- Ifeyinwa OsunkwoCharlotte$218K
- Edward SmithDurham$164K
- Katherine SmithRaleigh$133K
- James StillRaleigh$105K
- Richard BrugmanGastonia$73K
- Daniel LandiDurham$70K
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.