Pramod Kakarala, MD
Hospitalist · Atlanta, GANPI 1972881795
Payments from drug & device makers
What this record shows
Almost everything reported here is food and beverage — 100.0% of the total across 124 separate payments, which is the pattern of a clinician who attends manufacturer presentations rather than one with a consulting arrangement. 15 manufacturers reported payments, led by Johnson & Johnson at 55.2% of the total. Reporting peaked in 2021 at $1,882 and has fallen 98.7% since, to $24 in 2025. Among hospitalist clinicians in GA 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 124 payments — averaging $41.48 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- Johnson & Johnson$3K
- AstraZeneca$695
- E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C.$494
- Pfizer$245
- Gilead$146
- GT Medical Technologies, Inc$140
- plus $585 from 9 others
What the payments were for
- Food & beverage$5,143100%
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Johnson & Johnson | 63 | $2,839 |
| AstraZeneca(2 entities) | 11 | $695 |
| E.r. Squibb & Sons, L.L.C. | 20 | $494 |
| Pfizer | 13 | $245 |
| Gilead | 2 | $146 |
| GT Medical Technologies, Inc | 1 | $140 |
| Novartis | 2 | $139 |
| GSK | 1 | $121 |
| Janssen Scientific Affairs, LLC | 1 | $102 |
| Boehringer Ingelheim | 3 | $87 |
| Salix Pharmaceuticals, A Division Of Bausch Health US, LLC | 3 | $61 |
| Abbott | 1 | $23 |
| Boston Scientific | 1 | $18 |
| La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company | 1 | $17 |
| ZOLL Services LLC (a/k/a ZOLL Lifecor Corp) | 1 | $16 |
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
$5,143 in reported general payments places this provider in the 95th percentile of 812 hospitalist providers in Georgia.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| EliquisApixaban | 852 | $141,334 |
| Trelegy ElliptaFluticasone/Umeclidin/Vilanter | 76 | $29,310 |
| TradjentaLinagliptin | 196 | $29,064 |
| XareltoRivaroxaban | 166 | $25,916 |
| EntrestoSacubitril/Valsartan | 122 | $23,275 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 128 | $22,023 |
| Memantine Hcl | 911 | $17,159 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 84 | $13,107 |
| Famotidine | 1,512 | $11,640 |
| Donepezil Hcl | 727 | $10,200 |
| VraylarCariprazine Hcl | 25 | $10,018 |
| Levothyroxine Sodium | 1,710 | $8,905 |
| Aripiprazole | 117 | $8,406 |
| Gabapentin | 988 | $8,123 |
| Breo ElliptaFluticasone/Vilanterol | 18 | $8,057 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| PfizerEliquis | $245 | $141,334852 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimTradjenta, Jardiance | $87 | $51,087324 claims |
| GSKTrelegy Ellipta, Breo Ellipta, Incruse Ellipta | $121 | $42,366107 claims |
| Johnson & JohnsonXarelto | $2,839 | $25,916166 claims |
| NovartisEntresto | $139 | $23,275122 claims |
| AstraZenecaFarxiga, Brilinta | $695 | $17,818117 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 95th percentile of 812 hospitalist providers in Georgia.
Other hospitalist in Atlanta
- Emilio LacayoAtlanta$9K
- Mukesh KumarAtlanta$6K
- Amaka EzimoraAtlanta$6K
- Majid SheikhAtlanta$4K
- Richard RamonellAtlanta$4K
- Manpreet MalikAtlanta$4K
- Pranay PrabhakarAtlanta$4K
- Anup PatelAtlanta$3K
- Nnaemeka OkaroAtlanta$3K
- David WatsonAtlanta$3K
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.