Department of Health and Human Services June 1, 2010 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

In accordance with the requirements of the Privacy Act of 1974, CMS is proposing to modify or alter existing system of records titled ``National Provider System,'' System No. 09-70-0008. Under the authority of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Public Law (Pub. L.) 104-191, this system was established and published in the Federal Register (FR) at 63 FR 40297 (July 28, 1998). The system name ``National Provider System'' describes the original system designed to enumerate individual health care providers and maintain the information submitted in their application, the National Provider Identifier (NPI) Application/Update Form (Form CMS- 10114). Expectation of the adoption of a standard unique health identifier for health plans would broaden the function of the system to enable it to assign health plan identifiers to health plans; as a result, the name of the system is proposed to read: the ``National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES).'' Although the Federal Register Notice (July 28, 1998) stated that both organizational providers and providers who are individuals are included in the NPS database, and the system may be expanded in the future to include enumerated health plans, this system of records will be applicable only to the collection and maintenance of information about enumerated health care providers who are individuals (e.g., physicians and non- physician practitioners), containing the information they submitted on their NPI applications and their assigned NPI.