National Provider Identifier

A unique 10-digit HIPAA-mandated identifier assigned by CMS to every covered healthcare provider in the US. Used across EHR, claims, pharmacy, and enrollment systems to standardize provider identification in 837, 835, and NCPDP transactions, replacing legacy identifiers such as UPIN and PIN.

• Provider data management and credentialing workflows
• Network adequacy analysis and directory accuracy
• NPI validation and NPPES registry reconciliation
• Provider master data management (MDM)
• Payer-provider contract and fee schedule management

ISO-11179 snake_case standard

-- Recommended column name
npi

-- Example DDL
CREATE TABLE healthcare_data (
  record_id   VARCHAR(50)   NOT NULL,
  npi          VARCHAR(10),  -- National Provider Identifier (max 10 chars)
  created_dt  TIMESTAMP     NOT NULL DEFAULT NOW()
);

Column names follow the ISO-11179 naming convention: lowercase, underscore-separated, using the standard abbreviation as a prefix where applicable.