By: Kayla Mackanin, PharmD Candidate of 2015
The Florida Pharmacy Association is comprised of various councils and committees that aid the Board of Directors in understanding the issues faced by the pharmacy profession. Among the 5 standing councils, all of which have USF-COP student representation, is the Professional Affairs Council. The focus of FPA’s Professional Affairs Council (PAC) is to develop ideas that further pharmacy and to develop the framework and steps to carry out these ideas. At the Florida Pharmacy Association 2013 Annual Conference held in Orlando this past July, FPA’s professional affairs council hosted an “NPI Drive.” The purpose of this drive was to promote and facilitate pharmacist registration for National Provider Identifier (NPI) numbers. The NPI number is the CMS (HIPAA) standard for identifying healthcare providers (HCP). In order to submit claims to the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for services provided to patients, recognized health providers must have and use their NPI.
The PAC seeks opportunities that serve the national agenda of the pharmacy profession, one of which is obtaining pharmacist “provider status” by CMS. Many different definitions exist to define and recognize HCPs, but pharmacist inclusion in the CMS definition is key. CMS recognition will remove current limitations on the type of services and amount of reimbursement pharmacists are eligible for when submitting claims to CMS. Unlike CMS definitions of HCPs, the HIPPA definition used to determine NPI eligibility does recognize pharmacists as HCPs. Basically, pharmacists are eligible for an individual NPI number, though they are not required to have or use it since CMS does not include pharmacists in their definition. Here, we can appreciate the disconnect. Because pharmacist NPI eligibility serves as another example of recognizing pharmacists as healthcare providers, the PAC realized an opportunity to support the national ‘provider status’ initiative by hosting an NPI drive. The potential for success became even more apparent when background research by the council demonstrated the application process was free, simple, and available to complete online. While signing up for an NPI does not translate into immediate or individual recognition as a HCP by CMS, it is a strategic step is readying pharmacists and anticipating the changes in the pharmacy profession.
The booth was open during most of the conference activities and facilitated by pharmacy student volunteers and several FPA pharmacists. Pharmacy students assisted applicants through the NPI registration process, answered questions, aided in troubleshooting, and provided forms for pharmacists to record their new account information and NPI number. We were also able to search the NPI registry for pharmacists who were unsure if they had obtained an individual NPI already. USF-COP had strong representation in the effort. Dalia Zall, Patrick McKeon, Matthew Schneller, and Kayla Mackanin were among the USF-COP student volunteers who dedicated time in making this event a success! Way to Represent!
According to our records, 126 pharmacists registered for an NPI number during the conference. This number only captures those pharmacists who were able to sign the log before leaving the booth. In addition, a number of pharmacists received the informational handout with plans of registering at a later time. It is estimated that somewhere between 200-250 pharmacists now have NPI numbers as a result of the efforts of this drive.
Pharmacists were not the only ones signing up for NPI numbers. Student pharmacists and technicians are also eligible, and comprised an additional 48 NPI registrations during the conference. Leaders from county, state, and national pharmacy associations, as well as pharmacy district managers and other employers were enthusiastic and supportive of the efforts and purpose of the NPI drive. Many expressed interest in holding similar events. The NPI Drive is still featured on the lower left panel of FPA’s homepage (www.pharmview.com ). Here you will find the NPI registration link and a file with more information on the benefits of NPI registration (created by a USFCOP P3 student!)
The Florida Pharmacy Association Professional Affairs Council most recently met in August 2013 to discuss future directions for building upon the efforts and success of this year’s NPI drive. Stay tuned for the 2014 version “NPI plus” & other exciting initiatives the PAC is working to accomplish this year.