How to Find Pathologists by Zip Code

Q: Why does 'Pathologist' return zero results in the NPI registry?

The CMS NPI API uses specialty-type strings from the NUCC taxonomy, not practitioner titles. 'Pathologist' is a job title — no NUCC code uses that label. The correct general-pathologist string is 'Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology' (NUCC 207ZP0102X), which most pathologists who practice both anatomic and clinical work are enrolled under. We confirmed live on June 13, 2026: taxonomy_description=Pathologist = 0 results.

Q: What is the difference between 'Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology', 'Anatomic Pathology' alone, and 'Clinical Pathology' alone?

These are three separate NUCC codes. 'Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology' (207ZP0102X) is the combined board certification held by most general pathologists — it is the most populated code in the registry. 'Anatomic Pathology' alone (207ZP0101X) captures pathologists who only do anatomic work without clinical lab oversight. 'Clinical Pathology' alone (207ZC0500X) captures laboratory medicine specialists who do not perform anatomic pathology. Querying AP alone or CP alone will miss pathologists enrolled only under the combined code. All three return 200+ nationally but represent meaningfully different populations.

Q: Why do pathology counts vary so widely between Vermont and Wyoming?

Vermont returned 86 statewide and Wyoming returned 30. This reflects both population size and hospital infrastructure. Vermont has a higher concentration of academic and community hospital labs relative to its population, while Wyoming's pathology workforce is smaller and more concentrated in a few hospital systems. For a lab-device territory covering a small state, Vermont (86) is large enough to segment by city or hospital system; Wyoming (30) may be a single unified territory.

Q: Do pathology subspecialists — cytopathologists, dermatopathologists — appear in an AP&CP query?

Only if they also enrolled under the AP&CP base code. Pathologists who subspecialized and enrolled under only the subspecialty code (Cytopathology, Dermatopathology, Molecular Genetic Pathology) will not appear in a base AP&CP query. For a complete pathologist call list, run the base AP&CP query plus the subspecialty queries that are relevant to your product — dermatopathology for dermpath-specific diagnostics, molecular genetic pathology for genomic test platforms, cytopathology for fine-needle aspiration and cytology consumables.

Q: What does a Memphis pathologist call list actually contain, and how clean is the data?

Memphis returned 128 pathology records (June 2026): 118 NPI-1 individual pathologists and 10 NPI-2 organization records (lab groups and pathology practice organizations). Credential breakdown of NPI-1 records: M.D. 54, MD 45, M.D. (with PhD or MBBS variants) 19. The data is notably clean — pathologists almost exclusively enumerate under the AP&CP code with no significant credential noise from non-physician providers. This is in contrast to specialties like Critical Care Medicine or Pediatrics where NP/PA records add noise.

Q: What lab-device and diagnostics products map to a pathologist call list?

A pathologist NPI call list supports reps for: anatomic pathology instruments (tissue processors, embedding stations, microtomes, slide stainers), immunohistochemistry reagent systems, digital pathology platforms (whole-slide scanners, image analysis software), laboratory information systems (LIS), molecular diagnostics platforms (NGS, PCR systems), and hematology analyzers for clinical pathology accounts. Cytopathology accounts add liquid-biopsy processing systems and cytology staining kits. Dermatopathology accounts are relevant for immunofluorescence systems and skin-biopsy workflow tools.

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. Raw query results are available for download. See methodology below.

To find licensed pathologists near a zip code, query the federal NPI registry with taxonomy_description=Anatomic+Pathology+%26+Clinical+Pathology — NUCC code 207ZP0102X. This is the most unguessable taxonomy string in the registry for a common specialty. "Pathologist" returns zero. "Anatomic Pathology" alone and "Clinical Pathology" alone are separate narrower codes that, together, still do not equal the combined AP&CP population. The ampersand in the string must be URL-encoded as %26. This guide covers the correct string, all subspecialty codes, real counts from 9 markets, and why pathology data is unusually clean.

The taxonomy trap: "Pathologist" returns zero — and the correct string is not guessable. We confirmed live on June 13, 2026:
• taxonomy_description=Pathologist → 0 results
• The correct base string for a general pathologist is Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology (207ZP0102X)
• Anatomic Pathology alone and Clinical Pathology alone are separate, narrower codes — each returns 200+ nationally, but the combined AP&CP code is the standard enrollment for most general pathologists
• Subspecialties (Cytopathology, Dermatopathology, Molecular Genetic Pathology, Forensic Pathology) are all separate strings that require independent queries

Pathologists in the NPI registry: real counts from 9 markets

We queried the CMS NPI API v2.1 directly on June 13, 2026 for taxonomy_description=Anatomic+Pathology+%26+Clinical+Pathology.

Market	Query scope	NPI records returned	At 200-record cap?
New York, NY	City filter	200+	Yes (more exist)
Los Angeles, CA	City filter	200+	Yes (more exist)
Chicago, IL	City filter	200+	Yes (more exist)
Houston, TX	City filter	200+	Yes (more exist)
Phoenix, AZ	City filter	200+	Yes (more exist)
Nashville, TN	City filter	200+	Yes (more exist)
Memphis, TN	City filter	128	No (complete)
Vermont (statewide)	State filter	86	No (complete)
Wyoming (statewide)	State filter	30	No (complete)

Source: CMS NPI API v2.1, June 13, 2026. Download raw counts (JSON).

Memphis, TN — drill one market deep (128 records, June 2026)
Entity type: 118 NPI-1 (individual pathologists) / 10 NPI-2 (lab groups and pathology organizations)
Credential breakdown (NPI-1): M.D. 54, MD 45, M.D. (PhD/MBBS variants) 19
Key insight: Pathology data is unusually clean — almost exclusively MD physicians with no meaningful credential noise from non-physician providers. The 10 NPI-2 records are pathology group practices and lab organizations. Because pathologists work in hospital and reference labs rather than outpatient offices, their NPI practice address often reflects the hospital or lab system — important context when using address data to segment accounts by institution.

Download Memphis raw JSON

Pathology taxonomy strings

All pathology-related taxonomy strings are separate NUCC codes. All were verified live on June 13, 2026 with 200+ national results.

Specialty	Taxonomy string (exact)	NUCC code	National sample (June 2026)
General pathologist (base)	`Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology`	207ZP0102X	200+ (capped nationally)
Anatomic pathology only	`Anatomic Pathology`	207ZP0101X	200+
Clinical pathology only	`Clinical Pathology`	207ZC0500X	200+
Cytopathologist	`Cytopathology`	207ZC0006X	200+
Dermatopathologist	`Dermatopathology`	207ZD0900X	200+
Molecular genetic pathologist	`Molecular Genetic Pathology`	207ZP0213X	200+
Forensic pathologist	`Forensic Pathology`	207ZF0201X	200+

Codes extracted from live CMS NPI API responses. Download Vermont raw JSON.

How to search pathologists by zip code — step by step

Open the NPI registry

Go to npiregistry.cms.hhs.gov or open the getdork physician search. In the raw API, URL-encode the ampersand as %26.

Set the taxonomy string to `Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology`

In getdork, the correct string is selected from the specialty dropdown. In the raw API: taxonomy_description=Anatomic+Pathology+%26+Clinical+Pathology. This is the canonical base enrollment for most general pathologists.

Use a zip radius — pathologists bill from hospital addresses

Pathologists work in hospital labs, so their NPI address is the hospital or lab, not a private office. A city filter should capture most hospital-based records if the hospital is within city limits. A 25–50 mile radius catches suburban hospital campuses.

Add subspecialty queries for targeted call lists

For genomic testing or molecular diagnostic platforms: add Molecular Genetic Pathology. For dermpath-specific tools: add Dermatopathology. For cytology consumables: add Cytopathology. Each query runs independently and may return different providers.

Export to CSV (Pro)

Export captures NPI, name, credential, entity type, address, and phone. For NPI-2 records, the organization name identifies the lab system — useful for grouping pathologists by institution in your CRM.

Radius guidance for pathology territory planning

Market type	Recommended radius	Rationale
Dense urban (NYC, Chicago, LA)	15–25 miles	All cap at 200+; narrow radius focuses on a manageable segment
Mid-size metro (Memphis)	25–40 miles	128 complete records; radius adds suburban hospital campuses
Small state (Vermont)	Statewide or 50 miles	86 total statewide — manageable as a single territory sweep
Sparse rural (Wyoming)	Statewide — 30 total	Plan the full state as a single territory; 30 is the complete call list

Search pathologists by ZIP — free
Build your pathology call list from the federal NPI registry. No sign-up required.

Search pathologists by ZIP — free

Frequently asked questions

Why does "Pathologist" return zero results in the NPI registry?

The NPI API uses NUCC specialty strings, not job titles. "Pathologist" has no matching taxonomy code. The correct general-pathologist string is Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology (207ZP0102X). We confirmed live on June 13, 2026: taxonomy_description=Pathologist = 0 results.

What is the difference between "Anatomic Pathology & Clinical Pathology", "Anatomic Pathology" alone, and "Clinical Pathology" alone?

Three separate NUCC codes. The combined AP&CP code (207ZP0102X) is the standard dual-board enrollment held by most general pathologists who practice both anatomic work (tissue biopsies, surgical specimens) and clinical lab oversight (hematology, chemistry, microbiology). AP alone (207ZP0101X) covers pathologists focused only on tissue work; CP alone (207ZC0500X) covers laboratory medicine specialists without anatomic work. Querying only AP or only CP will miss pathologists enrolled under the combined code. All three return 200+ nationally.

Why do pathology counts vary so widely between Vermont and Wyoming?

Vermont returned 86 statewide; Wyoming returned 30. Vermont has a higher academic and community hospital density relative to its population — the University of Vermont Medical Center and a network of community hospitals support a larger pathology workforce. Wyoming has fewer hospitals and more concentrated pathology resources. Both are complete totals (no 200-cap). Wyoming is a single-territory call list at 30 providers.

Do pathology subspecialists — cytopathologists, dermatopathologists — appear in an AP&CP query?

Only if they also enrolled under the AP&CP base code. Subspecialists enrolled only under Cytopathology, Dermatopathology, or Molecular Genetic Pathology will not appear in the base AP&CP query. For a complete pathologist call list specific to your product, run the base query plus the relevant subspecialty queries (Cytopathology for cytology tools, Dermatopathology for dermpath diagnostics, Molecular Genetic Pathology for NGS platforms).

What does a Memphis pathologist call list actually contain, and how clean is the data?

Memphis: 128 records (118 NPI-1 / 10 NPI-2), all MD physicians, essentially no credential noise from non-physician providers. This makes pathology one of the cleaner specialties in the registry. The 10 NPI-2 records are pathology group and lab organization accounts. Pathologists bill from hospital and lab addresses, so the address field maps directly to the institution — useful for segmenting your territory by health system.

What lab-device and diagnostics products map to a pathologist call list?

A base AP&CP call list supports: anatomic pathology instruments (tissue processors, microtomes, slide stainers), immunohistochemistry reagent systems, digital pathology platforms (whole-slide scanners, image analysis), LIS platforms, molecular diagnostics systems (NGS, PCR), and hematology analyzers. Add Cytopathology for cytology staining and liquid-biopsy tools; Dermatopathology for immunofluorescence systems; Molecular Genetic Pathology for genomic test platforms targeting precision oncology workflows.

Methodology

All counts come from direct CMS NPI API v2.1 queries run June 13, 2026 using the exact string Anatomic+Pathology+%26+Clinical+Pathology. The gotcha string Pathologist was verified to return 0 results on the same date. NUCC codes were extracted from the taxonomies[].code field in live API responses. The 200-record cap applies; markets showing "200+" have actual totals beyond what the API returns in a single request.

Downloads: npi-counts-pathology.json · npi-pathology-memphis-tn-raw.json · npi-pathology-vermont-raw.json · collection script (.ps1)