Overview

The Provider Specific File (PSF) contains a set of provider attributes and policy rates set annually by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Together, these factors adjust the base rate for how Medicare will pay providers for each claim under the Prospective Payment System. For example, the file contains information on a provider’s location for wage index adjustments, CMS value-based payment incentives, the ratio of Medicaid patients served, and the ratio of interns and residents at teaching hospitals. The Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) maintain the information on each provider’s PSF record.

To learn more about how these PSF factors drive pricing for payment, please see the CMS Web Pricer estimator tools.

Getting Started

Get started with accessing and understanding the data with the following steps:

About PDS

The Provider Data Service is a CMS initiative to modernize access to provider data across the Medicare payment system, starting with the Provider Specific File. Once fully implemented, the service will allow Medicare providers, commercial payers, auditors, and other public analysts to access PSF data for all Part A hospitals and facilities in near real-time.

The service is migrating the data from a mainframe environment to the cloud to improve file accessibility and updating flexibility as well as create an overall enhanced public user experience. Please email us at ModernizingMedicare@cms.hhs.gov with your comments or suggestions for provider data modernization.