{
  "schema_version": "citation-answer/v1",
  "answer_key": "npi-meaning",
  "artifact_slug": "npi-meaning",
  "query": "npi meaning",
  "citation_slots": 3,
  "canonical_path": "/learn/npi-meaning",
  "title": "What does NPI mean?",
  "description": "The meaning and source limits of the National Provider Identifier.",
  "answer_capsule": "NPI means National Provider Identifier. It is the ten-digit identifier CMS assigns through NPPES to enumerated health care providers for standard administrative transactions. Type 1 identifies an individual and Type 2 identifies an organization. The number identifies the published NPPES record; it does not prove licensure, Medicare enrollment, or quality.",
  "scope": "This is an identifier definition tied to the public NPPES record. Provider-reported names, addresses, taxonomy, and other fields can change and carry their own source dates.",
  "methodology_version": "citation-answer/v1",
  "reproducibility_note": "Re-derive this answer from the cited government file; no Fonteum account is required.",
  "limitations": [
    "NPPES fields are provider reported and are not a quality assessment."
  ],
  "related_links": [
    {
      "label": "What is an NPI number?",
      "href": "/learn/what-is-an-npi"
    }
  ],
  "data_as_of": "2026-07-20",
  "source_artifacts": [
    {
      "source_key": "cms-npi",
      "kind": "upstream",
      "file_name": "NPPES NPI Registry",
      "file_url": "https://npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov/",
      "publisher": "Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)",
      "published_date": null,
      "retrieved_date": null,
      "data_as_of": "2026-07-20",
      "sha256": null
    }
  ],
  "published_date": "2026-07-20",
  "modified_date": "2026-07-20",
  "sources": [
    {
      "source_key": "cms-npi",
      "name": "NPPES NPI Registry",
      "publisher": "Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)",
      "official_url": "https://npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov/",
      "source_date_kind": "accessed",
      "source_date": "2026-07-20",
      "limitation": "NPPES is provider-reported enumeration data. An NPI does not establish licensure, Medicare enrollment, identity beyond the published record, or quality."
    }
  ],
  "facts": [
    {
      "fact_key": "expansion",
      "label": "NPI means",
      "value": "National Provider Identifier",
      "source": {
        "source_key": "cms-npi",
        "name": "NPPES NPI Registry",
        "publisher": "Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)",
        "official_url": "https://npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov/",
        "source_date_kind": "accessed",
        "source_date": "2026-07-20",
        "limitation": "NPPES is provider-reported enumeration data. An NPI does not establish licensure, Medicare enrollment, identity beyond the published record, or quality."
      }
    },
    {
      "fact_key": "format",
      "label": "Identifier format",
      "value": "Ten numeric digits",
      "source": {
        "source_key": "cms-npi",
        "name": "NPPES NPI Registry",
        "publisher": "Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)",
        "official_url": "https://npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov/",
        "source_date_kind": "accessed",
        "source_date": "2026-07-20",
        "limitation": "NPPES is provider-reported enumeration data. An NPI does not establish licensure, Medicare enrollment, identity beyond the published record, or quality."
      }
    }
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "question": "Does an NPI prove a provider is licensed?",
      "answer": "No. NPI enumeration and professional licensure are separate records maintained for different purposes."
    }
  ]
}