NPI: NPI Registration on the Medi-Cal Web Site Begins in September
Updated: March 28, 2007
Beginning in September 2006, Medi-Cal and Child Health and Disability Prevention (CHDP) providers will be able to register their National Provider Identifier (NPI) with the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) through an automated collection system.
In conjunction with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), DHCS and EDS are working toward making the implementation of the NPI understandable for Medi-Cal and CHDP providers.
To use the NPI registration tool, providers must enter their current provider number(s) and unique identifying information that will be authenticated. Providers then enter their NPI and other important information.
HIPAA mandates the use of an NPI beginning May 23, 2007. DHCS encourages providers to apply for their NPI at the National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES) Web site and then register that NPI with Medi-Cal as soon as possible. Early NPI registration with Medi-Cal will assist DHCS with its goal of providing uninterrupted payment when the HIPAA-mandated transition takes place.
NPIs registered with Medicare and taxonomy codes provided in the original NPI application to NPPES also will be collected through this tool. NPIs for Non-Physician Medical Practitioners (NMPs) will be collected for providers who currently have NMP data on file with Medi-Cal.
Providers can authorize the automatic update of existing agreements on file with their NPI information. The collection tool includes a list of agreement forms that contain the current Medi-Cal provider number.
Providers who have more than one active Medi-Cal or CHDP provider number must log in separately for each provider number in order to register their single or subpart NPI. Providers with more than one NPI for a single Medi-Cal or CHDP provider number can register only one NPI through the NPI registration tool.
Please see future Medi-Cal Updates and return to this Web site for more information.