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As part of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) ongoing work to improve access to care, reduce clinician burden, and support interoperability throughout the health sector, CMS released a Request for Information (RFI) seeking public input on the concept of CMS creating a directory with information on health care providers and services or a “National Directory of Healthcare Providers and Services” (NDH).
We believe that CMS may have the opportunity to alleviate some of the challenges associated with provider directories through an NDH built on a modern interoperable technology platform. We envision that an NDH could serve as a “centralized data hub” for providers’ directory and digital contact information, which would contain accurate, up-to-date, and validated data in a publicly accessible index. These data would be available for payers to use in their own network directories, lessening the burden to collect data directly from providers. Such a hub could improve interoperability, patient choice, care coordination, and reduce provider and payer administrative burden. Through the RFI, we solicit feedback related to the NDH concept, including provider types, entities and data elements that could be included to create value for the industry, interactions with current CMS data systems and impacts to business processes, the technical framework for an NDH, priorities for a phased implementation, and how CMS can address prerequisites, challenges, and risks.
The RFI is open for a 60-day public comment period through December 6, 2022.
To read and respond to the RFI, visit: https://www.federalregister.gov/public-inspection/2022-21904/request-for-information-national-directory-of-healthcare-providers-and-services
For questions or more information on this Request for Information, please contact the CMS Office of Burden Reduction & Health Informatics
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