# NPI Healthcare Provider Lookup — CMS NPPES Registry API (`accountable_eel/npi-provider-lookup`) Actor

Look up any US healthcare provider or organization by NPI number: name, credential, taxonomy/specialty, status, and practice address. Uses CMS's own official NPPES registry, no API key needed. Charged only for NPIs that resolve to a real record.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/accountable\_eel/npi-provider-lookup.md
- **Developed by:** [Adrian Voss](https://apify.com/accountable_eel) (community)
- **Categories:** Lead generation, Developer tools
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $2.00 / 1,000 successful lookups

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/actors/running/actors-in-store.md#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## NPI Healthcare Provider Lookup

Look up any US healthcare provider or organization by NPI number against the
[CMS NPPES NPI Registry](https://npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov) — name, credential, taxonomy/specialty,
enumeration status, and practice address. No API key, no scraping — this hits CMS's own official,
free public registry API directly.

### Features

- **NPI → full provider record.** Name (or organization name), credential, enumeration type,
  status, and enumeration/last-updated dates.
- **Individual & organization NPIs both handled.** NPI-1 (individual providers) and NPI-2
  (organizations) are parsed into the same consistent shape.
- **Specialty/taxonomy detail.** Every taxonomy code on record, with description, primary flag,
  license number, and state.
- **Practice address & phone.** The provider's primary location address and telephone number.
- **Pay only for hits.** NPIs that don't resolve to a real record cost nothing — see
  [Pricing](#pricing).
- **Built for bulk.** Feed in thousands of NPIs; concurrency and proxy behavior are both
  configurable.

### How to use NPI Healthcare Provider Lookup — CMS NPPES Registry API

1. **In the Apify Console.** Open the actor page and click **Start** — the `items` field is already pre-filled with a working example. Results land in the run's dataset as soon as each item is found.
2. **Via the API.** Call it directly with a POST request — no Console needed once you have an API token:
   ```bash
   curl "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/accountable_eel~npi-provider-lookup/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=<YOUR_TOKEN>" \
     -X POST \
     -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
     -d '{"items":["1437702123"]}'
   ```
3. **On a schedule.** Save this actor as an Apify **Task** with the input you want, then add a **Schedule** (hourly, daily, weekly) so it runs on its own — no server of your own required.

### Input

```json
{
  "items": ["1437702123", "1234567893"],
  "maxConcurrency": 5
}
```

`items` is a list of 10-digit National Provider Identifier (NPI) numbers. One dataset row comes
back per item. `maxConcurrency` (default 5, max 20) caps how many NPIs are looked up in
parallel; this target has no browser fallback, so a conservative value avoids rate-limit
trouble on large batches. `proxyConfiguration` lets you route through Apify Proxy (residential
recommended) if needed.

### Output

One row per NPI, for example:

```json
{
  "query": "1437702123",
  "found": true,
  "data": {
    "npi": "1437702123",
    "enumerationType": "NPI-1",
    "name": "Jane A Smith MD",
    "status": "active",
    "enumerationDate": "2007-05-23",
    "lastUpdated": "2021-11-02",
    "taxonomies": [
      { "description": "Internal Medicine", "primary": true, "license": "MD123456", "state": "CA" }
    ],
    "primaryAddress": {
      "address": "123 Main St",
      "city": "Los Angeles",
      "state": "CA",
      "postalCode": "90001",
      "telephone": "3105551234"
    }
  },
  "scrapedAt": "2026-08-20T12:00:00.000Z"
}
```

An NPI that doesn't exist in the NPPES registry comes back as `"found": false` with no `data` —
these rows are never charged.

### Use cases

- **Provider credentialing verification.** Confirm a provider's name, taxonomy, and active
  status before onboarding.
- **Healthcare directory building.** Bulk-enrich a list of NPIs into a searchable provider
  directory with specialty and location.
- **Claims & billing validation.** Verify an NPI on a claim actually resolves to an active,
  correctly-typed provider (individual vs. organization).
- **Referral network mapping.** Pull practice addresses and specialties to map referral
  relationships by geography.
- **Compliance audits.** Spot-check whether NPIs referenced in records are still active and
  match the expected name/taxonomy.

### Pricing

$4 per 1,000 results, plus a $0.00005 start fee. Misses (`found:false`) are never charged.

### Use it from Clay, n8n, Make, or an AI agent

This actor runs synchronously over plain HTTP — call it directly from a script, a workflow tool, or an AI agent, no Apify Console needed once you have an API token.

```bash
curl "https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/accountable_eel~npi-provider-lookup/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=<YOUR_TOKEN>" \
  -X POST \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"items":["1437702123"]}'
```

**n8n.** Add an HTTP Request node: Method `POST`, URL `https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/accountable_eel~npi-provider-lookup/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=<YOUR_TOKEN>`, Body Content Type `JSON`, JSON Body `{"items":["1437702123"]}` (swap in an expression from an earlier node for a real value).

**Clay.** Add an "HTTP API" column: Method `POST`, URL `https://api.apify.com/v2/acts/accountable_eel~npi-provider-lookup/run-sync-get-dataset-items?token=<YOUR_TOKEN>`, Body `{"items":["{{value}}"]}`, mapping the row's value into the `items` array.

**MCP.** In Claude, Cursor, or any MCP client with the Apify MCP server, ask for "NPI Healthcare Provider Lookup | Apify" — the agent will find and run this actor.

### FAQ

**What counts as "not found"?** The NPPES API returns `result_count: 0` for any NPI it doesn't
recognize. This actor treats that (or a malformed response) as not found — no charge.

**How are individual and organization NPIs different?** NPI-1 records (individuals) return a
`name` built from first/middle/last name plus credential; NPI-2 records (organizations) return
the organization name instead. Both are normalized into the same `name` field, with
`enumerationType` telling you which kind you got.

**Which address is returned?** The provider's `LOCATION`-purpose address (practice address) is
preferred; if that's missing, the first address on file is used instead.

**Does `status` reflect deactivation?** Yes — CMS's own status code is normalized to `"active"`
when the record is active; any other status code is passed through as-is.

**How fresh is the data?** Live — every run queries the NPPES registry directly, not a cached
snapshot, so status and taxonomy reflect what's currently on file.

**What proxy should I use?** Apify Proxy is enabled by default; NPPES's public API is generally
permissive, but residential proxies are available if you see blocks on large runs.

# Actor input Schema

## `items` (type: `array`):

One item per line — see the item shape and examples below. Only the items we actually find are charged — never per run, and never for a miss.

## `maxConcurrency` (type: `integer`):

Parallel requests. Keep conservative — this target has no browser fallback, so getting blocked costs more than slow-and-steady.

## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`):

Apify Proxy config. Residential recommended for anti-bot-sensitive targets.

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "items": [
    "1437702123"
  ],
  "maxConcurrency": 5,
  "proxyConfiguration": {
    "useApifyProxy": true
  }
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "items": [
        "1437702123"
    ]
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("accountable_eel/npi-provider-lookup").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = { "items": ["1437702123"] }

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("accountable_eel/npi-provider-lookup").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "items": [
    "1437702123"
  ]
}' |
apify call accountable_eel/npi-provider-lookup --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,accountable_eel/npi-provider-lookup"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/2jQWcSgZlZhLpq8Vb/builds/X620QXF3lAx1J99ka/openapi.json