Methodology

Praxis MD is an independent directory of every healthcare provider with a National Provider Identifier (NPI) issued by CMS. We refresh from the source on a fixed schedule and publish every change we observe.

Where the data comes from

Every provider record on Praxis MD is sourced from the National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES), a public dataset maintained by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). We do not collect, purchase, or scrape provider data from any other source.

How often we refresh

NPPES publishes a monthly full-replacement bulk file and weekly delta files containing newly added, updated, and deactivated NPIs. Praxis MD's pipeline supports both. The date displayed on each page is the authoritative snapshot date for that published page.

• Monthly bulk target: first Tuesday of each month.
• Weekly delta target: every Saturday.
• Deactivation report: applied with the monthly cycle.

Provider pages show the provider record's own NPPES update date, and provider sitemap lastmod values track the rendered page rather than claiming every profile changed with each bulk download. If a page is older than the target cadence, use its direct CMS link for the current source record.

What we publish

We publish the public fields CMS releases in the NPPES dissemination files. That includes provider name, credentials, taxonomies, state licenses, practice and mailing addresses, and other identifiers (Medicare PTAN, Medicaid IDs, state board IDs).

We do not publish personal contact information, demographic data, malpractice history, or anything that isn't part of the public NPPES file.

Change history

For every provider, we maintain a delta log of every observed change to a tracked field (name, taxonomies, addresses, status, licenses). The log lets us show "added subspecialty 2023-04-15" or "practice address changed 2019-11-02" on each provider's page. This is data we compute by comparing successive NPPES files — it is not in any single CMS file directly.

What we don't claim

Praxis MD shows what NPPES contains. We don't independently verify license status, malpractice records, or active payer enrollment. An NPI listing is not proof of active licensure or payer enrollment. Always verify directly with the state board and the payer of record.

Attribution

Praxis MD is an independent public resource. We are not affiliated with CMS, HHS, or NPPES, and not endorsed by the U.S. government. NPPES is the system of record; we are a presentation layer over its public data.

Corrections

Praxis MD reflects what's in NPPES. If a provider's information is wrong on this site, it's wrong at the source. Providers can update their NPPES record at nppes.cms.hhs.gov. Updates flow into Praxis MD on the next refresh cycle.