How we source & handle the data.
Total transparency about where every record comes from, how often it updates, and what we do (and don't) change. Short version: we mirror the public CMS NPPES registry and never alter it.
This page documents how FindMyNPI sources, processes, and presents the data shown across the directory. We publish this in full so that researchers, journalists, providers, and patients can independently assess the quality and currency of the records on the site.
Data source
Every provider record on FindMyNPI originates from the National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES), the federal registry of healthcare providers operated by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. CMS makes the entire dataset available as a monthly public dissemination file at download.cms.gov/nppes/NPI_Files.html. The file is in the public domain and contains the registration records that providers themselves submitted to CMS. We do not augment the records with information from other sources; we do not edit or filter records other than to remove fields that are blank in the source.
Refresh cadence
The CMS dissemination file is published on the second Monday of each month and reflects the state of NPPES as of the prior Sunday. We download the new file within seven days of publication, validate its structure, regenerate every page on the site, and redeploy. Between refreshes, the site reflects the snapshot from the most recent file. We display the snapshot date prominently on every provider page so that visitors can judge whether the record is recent enough for their purpose.
Field coverage
Every provider page reproduces the following fields from the NPPES record when present: legal name and credentials, NPI number, enumeration type (individual or organisation), primary taxonomy code and human-readable specialty, primary practice address, mailing address, telephone, fax, sole-proprietor status, gender (for individual providers), authorised official details (for organisations), date of enumeration, and date of last update. Secondary taxonomies and additional addresses are listed when present in the source.
Slug and URL stability
URLs are constructed deterministically from the NPI itself for provider pages and from a frozen mapping of state codes, taxonomy codes, and city names for index pages. The mapping is versioned and changes only when CMS introduces new taxonomy codes or new states (which has not happened since 1959). Provider page URLs at /p/[npi] are therefore stable indefinitely, and external links into the site will not break across redeploys.
What we do not do
FindMyNPI does not collect reviews, ratings, or testimonials. We do not solicit or accept payment from providers in exchange for placement, suppression, or promotion of records. We do not run retargeting pixels, behavioural cookies, or third-party analytics scripts beyond what our advertising partner places on the page. Provider phone numbers shown on the site are displayed as published in NPPES and are not click-to-call leads sold to third parties.
Corrections
If a record is incorrect, the canonical fix is for the provider to update their NPPES record at nppes.cms.hhs.gov. The change will appear on FindMyNPI in the next monthly refresh. We do not maintain a parallel correction register because doing so would silently diverge our directory from the federal registry and undermine the basis on which we describe ourselves as a faithful mirror of public data.