How to Find Occupational Medicine Doctors by Zip Code

By the getdork research team — we build and maintain the NPI/physician-search tooling at getdork.com — Published June 13, 2026

Data sourced from live CMS NPI Registry API v2.1 queries, run June 13, 2026. All provider counts are real API responses, not estimates. Raw query results are available for download. See methodology below.

To find licensed occupational medicine physicians near a zip code, query the federal NPI registry with taxonomy_description=Occupational+Medicine — NUCC code 2083X0100X, a Preventive Medicine subspecialty. Memphis TN returned 14 records on June 13, 2026 (3 physician NPI-1 records, 9 occupational health clinic NPI-2 records); Vermont and Wyoming each returned 14 statewide. The common search term Occupational Health returns zero physicians — it maps to a non-physician qualifier used by chiropractors, RNs, and nurse practitioners.
The non-physician noise trap: Querying taxonomy_description=Occupational+Health returns no occupational medicine physicians. In our June 13, 2026 national sample (200 records), the top provider types were 72 Chiropractors (Occupational Health sub-code), 66 Nurse Practitioners (Occupational Health sub-code), and 46 Registered Nurses (Occupational Health sub-code) — plus additional physical medicine, clinic/center, and chiropractic records. The correct physician string is Occupational Medicine (2083X0100X). "Occupational Health" exists in the NUCC taxonomy only as a qualifier under non-physician provider types, not as a physician specialty.

Occupational medicine in the NPI registry: real counts from 9 markets

We queried the CMS NPI API v2.1 on June 13, 2026 for taxonomy_description=Occupational+Medicine across nine representative markets. The API returns a maximum of 200 records per request; "200+" means the true total exceeds 200 and is unknown.

Market Query scope NPI records returned At 200-record cap?
New York, NY City filter 35 No (complete)
Los Angeles, CA City filter 92 No (complete)
Chicago, IL City filter 95 No (complete)
Houston, TX City filter 149 No (complete)
Phoenix, AZ City filter 79 No (complete)
Nashville, TN City filter 44 No (complete)
Memphis, TN City filter 14 No (complete)
Vermont (statewide) State filter 14 No (complete)
Wyoming (statewide) State filter 16 No (complete)

Source: CMS NPI API v2.1, taxonomy_description=Occupational+Medicine, June 13, 2026. Download raw counts.

No market hit the 200-record cap. Houston's high count (149) reflects its petrochemical, energy, and logistics employer base. New York's lower count (35) is notable — the city's service-economy concentration means fewer industrial employer clinics. No occupational medicine market in this dataset requires pagination or ZIP-grid decomposition to get a complete call list.

Memphis drill-down (14 records, June 13, 2026):
NPI-1 individual physician records: 3  |  NPI-2 organizational accounts: 9
Sample NPI-1 records: 1891814604 (M.D., primary tax: Preventive Medicine, Occupational Medicine), 1245405620 (M.D.), 1538235171 (Medical Doctor)
Sample NPI-2 records: 1477366169 · 1912710617 · 1568540805 · 1598843849 · 1760628424 · 1568541266 · 1124264882 · 1932345691 (all Clinic/Center, Occupational Medicine)
Additional records: 1942256102 (NPI-1, primary tax: Internal Medicine, secondary Occupational Medicine); 1700720059 (NPI-2, primary tax: Clinic/Center, Primary Care)
NUCC code confirmed from records: 2083X0100X (Preventive Medicine, Occupational Medicine)
Source: npi-occupational-medicine-memphis-tn-raw.json

The "Occupational Health" vs "Occupational Medicine" distinction

This is the sharpest taxonomy trap in the preventive medicine cluster. Both strings exist in the NUCC system, but they refer to completely different provider populations:

Query string What it returns Physician population? National sample count
Occupational Medicine MD/DO occupational medicine specialists (Preventive Medicine subspecialty) Yes — MD/DO 200+ (capped)
Occupational Health Chiropractors, RNs, Nurse Practitioners with "Occupational Health" sub-code No — zero physicians 200+ (noise records)
Occupational Therapist OT rehabilitation professionals (225X NUCC group) — unrelated to occupational medicine No 200+ (capped)

Source: CMS NPI API v2.1 queries, June 13, 2026. Occupational Health noise sample raw JSON.

How to search for occupational medicine physicians step by step

Use the exact physician string

The CMS taxonomy string for occupational medicine physicians is Occupational Medicine (NUCC 2083X0100X). Do not use Occupational Health — it returns the non-physician population. A direct API call: 

# Correct — returns occupational medicine physicians in Houston TX
https://npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov/api/?version=2.1
  &taxonomy_description=Occupational+Medicine
  &city=Houston&state=TX&limit=200

# Wrong — returns chiropractors, RNs, NPs; zero physicians
&taxonomy_description=Occupational+Health

Distinguish physician NPI-1 from clinic NPI-2 records

Occupational medicine has a higher NPI-2 organizational share than most physician specialties. In Memphis, 9 of 14 records (64%) were NPI-2 clinic accounts. These organizations — often branded as "Occupational Health Centers" or employer health clinics — are the contracting entities. Their NPI record represents the clinic, not individual physicians. For direct physician outreach, filter by entity type NPI-1. For key-account or GPO-adjacent targeting, the NPI-2 records are the right starting point.

Consider statewide queries for smaller markets

Vermont (14 statewide) and Wyoming (16 statewide) returned counts comparable to Memphis city (14). A city filter in Wyoming would miss most occupational medicine providers who bill from industrial-area zip codes not matching a major city name. For any market where statewide count is below 50, run the statewide query first.

Layer Preventive Medicine if your product spans the broader specialty

Occupational medicine is a subspecialty of Preventive Medicine. If your product is relevant to the full Preventive Medicine group (all five sub-specialties), see the Preventive Medicine guide for the umbrella query and sub-code breakdown. If you need only occupational medicine physicians, the Occupational Medicine string is sufficient.

Export to CSV (Pro)

Pro users can export the full result set as a CSV file with all NPI fields — NPI, Name, Credential, Address, City, State, Zip, Phone, Entity Type — ready to import into a CRM or prospecting sheet.

Search occupational medicine physicians in your territory — free.

getdork sends the correct Occupational Medicine string automatically, filtering out the Occupational Health non-physician noise from the start.

Search Occupational Medicine by ZIP — free

Radius guidance for an occupational medicine territory

Occupational medicine clinics cluster near employment corridors, not evenly by population. Practical radius guidance by market type:

Frequently asked questions

Why does "Occupational Health" return chiropractors and nurses instead of physicians?

In the NUCC taxonomy, "Occupational Health" is a sub-code qualifier that appears under multiple non-physician provider types — Chiropractor, Occupational Health; Registered Nurse, Occupational Health; and Nurse Practitioner, Occupational Health. None of these are occupational medicine physicians (MD/DO). A national query for "Occupational Health" on June 13, 2026 returned 200+ records with the following top primary taxonomy breakdown: 72 Chiropractor, Occupational Health; 66 Nurse Practitioner, Occupational Health; 46 Registered Nurse, Occupational Health — zero occupational medicine physicians. The physician string is "Occupational Medicine" (2083X0100X).

What is the NUCC taxonomy structure for occupational medicine physicians?

Occupational Medicine (NUCC 2083X0100X) is a subspecialty within the Preventive Medicine parent group. Its parent category holds five sub-codes: Public Health & General Preventive Medicine (2083P0901X), Occupational Medicine (2083X0100X), Aerospace Medicine (2083A0100X), Undersea and Hyperbaric Medicine (2083H0002X), and Preventive Medicine/Occupational Environmental Medicine (2083T0002X). Querying the bare "Preventive Medicine" prefix returns all five populations combined. To isolate occupational medicine physicians specifically, query "Occupational Medicine" as the full string.

What does a Memphis occupational medicine call list actually look like?

Memphis TN returned 14 records in our June 13, 2026 query. Of those, 3 were NPI-1 individual physician records (M.D. and Medical Doctor credentials, primary taxonomy Preventive Medicine, Occupational Medicine) and 9 were NPI-2 occupational health clinic organizations (Clinic/Center, Occupational Medicine). One additional NPI-1 record had a primary taxonomy of Internal Medicine with Occupational Medicine as a secondary credential. One NPI-2 record was a primary care clinic with occupational medicine as a service line. The clinic NPI-2 records are the contracting entities — they typically employ multiple physicians not individually listed at the clinic NPI. For direct-to-physician targeting, NPI-1 records are the right filter; for institutional or key-account targeting, the NPI-2 clinic accounts represent the purchasing and contracting organizations.

How does occupational medicine density vary across markets?

Occupational medicine concentrations track employer density and industrial workforce size, not population alone. From our June 13, 2026 data: Houston TX (149 records) and Chicago IL (95) lead because of their petrochemical, manufacturing, and logistics employer bases. Los Angeles (92) and Phoenix (79) follow. New York City returned only 35 records — lower than expected for its population size, reflecting a service-economy concentration where occupational medicine is less clinic-prevalent than in industrial corridors. Vermont (14 statewide) and Wyoming (16 statewide) are small but complete call lists. Memphis returned 14 — comparable to the small states.

Is "Occupational Therapist" the same as "Occupational Medicine" in NPI data?

No — completely separate provider classes with no overlap. Occupational Therapists (NUCC codes under the 225X non-physician practitioner group) are rehabilitation professionals who help patients regain functional abilities after injury or illness. Occupational Medicine physicians (NUCC 2083X0100X) are MDs or DOs who diagnose and treat work-related injuries and diseases, evaluate fitness for duty, and manage employer health programs. Both returned 200+ records nationally. The only relationship is that occupational medicine physicians and occupational therapists sometimes work in the same employer health clinics — they are distinct call lists for distinct products.

What radius should I use for an occupational medicine territory?

Occupational medicine physicians and clinics cluster near industrial parks, logistics hubs, and large employer campuses rather than distributing evenly by population. In Houston (149 records) or Chicago (95), a 25-mile radius from your target zip will cover the relevant employer corridor. In mid-size markets (Nashville: 44, Phoenix: 79), 25–35 miles works. In markets like Memphis (14) or Vermont (14 statewide), a statewide query or 50-mile radius captures the full available list. Avoid tight city-filter queries in this specialty — occupational health clinics sometimes bill from suburban industrial addresses that won't match a city name filter.

Methodology

All data on this page was retrieved from the CMS NPI Registry API v2.1 (npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov) on June 13, 2026. No authentication is required. Queries used taxonomy_description=Occupational+Medicine with city or state filters. The non-physician noise comparison used taxonomy_description=Occupational+Health with no geographic filter (national sample).

The API returns a maximum of 200 records per request. When result_count equals 200, the true total exceeds 200 and cannot be determined from this endpoint alone. When result_count is below 200, the result set is complete. The numeric taxonomy= parameter is silently ignored by the API — specialty filtering only works via taxonomy_description=.

Raw API responses for Memphis TN and Vermont statewide are available for download: Memphis raw JSON  |  Vermont raw JSON  |  Occupational Health noise sample JSON  |  Data collection script (.ps1)

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