Venkatarama Donepudi, MD
Endocrinology, Diabetes & Metabolism · Hickory, NCNPI 1134198740
Payments from drug & device makers
Across 653 payments — averaging $213.65 each. Meals, travel, consulting and speaking fees, gifts and royalties reported by drug and device makers.
- AstraZeneca$109K
- Eli Lilly$20K
- Lilly USA, LLC$1K
- Novo Nordisk$971
- Amgen$771
- Sanofi-aventis U.S. LLC$746
- plus $6K from 48 others
Across 1 payment — averaging $535.01 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.
- Eli Lilly$535
What the payments were for
- Travel & lodging$5375%
- Food & beverage$10,90995%
- Education$480%
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.
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
$139,511 in reported general payments places this provider in the 85th percentile of 232 endocrinology, diabetes & metabolism providers in North Carolina.
See all endocrinology, diabetes & metabolism 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 |
|---|---|---|
| KorlymMifepristone | 13 | $470,616 |
| OzempicSemaglutide | 320 | $409,909 |
| JardianceEmpagliflozin | 157 | $147,720 |
| MounjaroTirzepatide | 85 | $104,033 |
| TrulicityDulaglutide | 91 | $103,371 |
| Tresiba Flextouch U-200Insulin Degludec | 110 | $102,804 |
| Toujeo SolostarInsulin Glargine,hum.Rec.Anlog | 136 | $74,226 |
| FarxigaDapagliflozin Propanediol | 92 | $64,039 |
| Toujeo Max SolostarInsulin Glargine,hum.Rec.Anlog | 74 | $62,501 |
| Soliqua 100-33Insulin Glargine/Lixisenatide | 47 | $55,485 |
| Tresiba Flextouch U-100Insulin Degludec | 99 | $48,649 |
| SynthroidLevothyroxine Sodium | 559 | $47,084 |
| KerendiaFinerenone | 49 | $42,789 |
| Repatha SureclickEvolocumab | 65 | $38,330 |
| Humulin R U-500 KwikpenInsulin Regular, Human | 30 | $34,327 |
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Corcept TherapeuticsKorlym | $472 | $470,61613 claims |
| Novo NordiskOzempic, Rybelsus, Novolog | $971 | $440,031366 claims |
| Lilly USA, LLCMounjaro, Trulicity, Humalog | $1,291 | $217,238220 claims |
| Boehringer IngelheimJardiance, Synjardy Xr | $197 | $169,616178 claims |
| AstraZenecaFarxiga | $109,203 | $64,03992 claims |
| Sanofi-aventis U.S. LLCSoliqua 100-33, Lantus | $746 | $61,41464 claims |
| AbbVieSynthroid | $235 | $47,084559 claims |
| BayerKerendia | $505 | $42,78949 claims |
| Amneal Pharmaceuticals LLCUnithroid, Levothyroxine Sodium | $339 | $29,1311,159 claims |
| MerckJanumet Xr, Januvia | $113 | $22,87540 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 85th percentile of 232 endocrinology, diabetes & metabolism providers in North Carolina.
Other endocrinology, diabetes & metabolism in Hickory
- Anthony BarberHickory$1.4M
- Kathryn LucasMorehead City$37.9M
- Mark WarrenGreenville$5M
- Mary LawrenceMorehead City$4.9M
- John ParkerWilmington$4.1M
- John BuseChapel Hill$3.8M
- Wendy LaneAsheville$1.9M
- Klara KleinChapel Hill$1.3M
- Thomas OconnellBurlington$805K
- Corey BerlinRaleigh$742K
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.