Verifying provider identities and addresses

[rosebaby3892]

"Physician database download" can refer to several different types of data, depending on what information you're looking for and your intended use. Generally, these databases are quite large and often come with specific terms of use or licensing fees, especially for comprehensive datasets.

Here are the main categories of physician databases available for download, and where you might find them:

1. National Provider Identifier (NPI) Registry Public Data
What it is: The NPI is a unique 10-digit identification number issued to healthcare providers in the U.S. by CMS (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services). The NPI Registry contains publicly available information about NPI-assigned providers.
Data Included: NPI, provider upbit database name (individual or organization), practice location addresses, mailing addresses, phone numbers, taxonomy codes (describing their specialty/type of practice), enumeration date, and last update date. It does NOT include protected health information (PHI) or personal financial data.
Use Cases:

Building provider directories.
Research on provider demographics and distribution.
Linking with other datasets (e.g., claims data) using the NPI.
How to Download:
CMS NPPES NPI Registry: This is the official source. They provide a monthly downloadable file that contains the full NPI database. Be aware that these files are very large (can exceed 4 GB) and require technical expertise to process.