The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has issued letters to state Medicaid agencies outlining national provider identifier requirements.

All covered entities initially were expected to be in compliance with NPI provisions by May 23, but in April the federal agency said it would not impose civil money penalties for a year on covered entities that have made good-faith efforts to comply and deploy contingency plans. Healthcare providers seeking federal reimbursements will be required to have NPI numbers.

Medicaid agencies that so far have implemented contingency plans must notify CMS within a month of receipt of the Aug. 9 letter, the agency said. Meanwhile, CMS recently sent a second letter announcing changes to the reporting specifications for the Medicaid Statistical Information System (MSIS).

The letters are available at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/SMDL/downloads/SMD080907A.pdf (NPI compliance) and http://www.cms.hhs.gov/SMDL/downloads/SMD080907.pdf (Medicaid Statistical Information System). See the NPI compliance guidance at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/NationalProvIdentStand/downloads/NPI_Contingency.pdf.