Sleep Specialist (PhD) providers in the U.S.
38 NPPES records list sleep specialist (phd) as their primary taxonomy; Colorado and Alaska have the most per resident. 5 of them appear in the Medicare Part D prescriber file: a registry record is not proof of an active practice.
What taxonomy code 173F00000X means
173F00000X is the National Uniform Claim Committee code for Sleep Specialist, PhD, in the grouping Other Service Providers. 38 NPPES records list it as their primary taxonomy (file of Aug 9, 2026).
Sleep medicine is a clinical specialty with a focus on clinical problems that require accurate diagnosis and treatment. The knowledge base of sleep medicine is derived from many disciplines including neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, respiratory physiology, pharmacology, psychology, psychiatry, neurology, general internal medicine, pulmonary medicine, and pediatrics as well as others.
Source: NUCC Health Care Provider Taxonomy code set, definition as NUCC publishes it (nucc.org); counts from CMS NPPES.
Most per resident: the 8 highest
Source: CMS NPPES, primary taxonomy 173F00000X by practice state, file of Aug 9, 2026; records per 100,000 residents, 2023 Census estimates.
Houston has the most, 2
Source: CMS NPPES, primary taxonomy 173F00000X by practice city, file of Aug 9, 2026.
All 18 states and D.C. with records, by state
| State | Records | Per 100,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 1 | 0.1 |
| California | 5 | 0.0 |
| Colorado | 3 | 0.1 |
| Florida | 1 | 0.0 |
| Georgia | 2 | 0.0 |
| Illinois | 3 | 0.0 |
| Maine | 1 | 0.1 |
| Maryland | 2 | 0.0 |
| Massachusetts | 1 | 0.0 |
| State | Records | Per 100,000 |
|---|---|---|
| Michigan | 3 | 0.0 |
| Nevada | 1 | 0.0 |
| New York | 1 | 0.0 |
| North Carolina | 1 | 0.0 |
| Oregon | 2 | 0.0 |
| Tennessee | 1 | 0.0 |
| Texas | 8 | 0.0 |
| Virginia | 1 | 0.0 |
| Washington | 1 | 0.0 |
In federal data
- NUCC code173F00000X · Sleep Specialist, PhD
- Size rank589th of 688 specialties by records (0% of all)
- Part D prescribers5 (13.2% of records)
- Part D claims934 a year per prescriber, on average (85th of 496)
- Industry payments2 physicians paid $1K in 2024, $592 each on average
- Concentration4 states hold half of all records
Source: CMS NPPES; Medicare Part D Prescriber PUF; CMS Open Payments 2024. Presence in these files is not a quality judgment.
A sample of sleep specialist (phd) records
- Jamie WheatleyFairbanks, AK1700479862
- Cheryl SpinweberLa Jolla, CA1487772794
- Tara NaderSouth San Francisco, CA1619306693
- David Woods, PH.D.Martinez, CA1467885566
- Alexander Clerk, M.D.San Jose, CA1902911381
- Elias MohammedSacramento, CA1043052749
- Lawrence Scrima, PH.D., D,ABSMAurora, CO1912173055
- Ellen Stothard, PHDLongmont, CO1932079860
- William Moorcroft, PH.D.Fort Collins, CO1992976500
- Vladimir MarcelinJacksonville, FL1366214256
- Praveen Rastogi, MD, FCCP, ABSMStockbridge, GA1265406375
- D Lankford, PH.D.Atlanta, GA1861400319
Registry order, not a ranking. Search by name to find one provider.
Common questions
Why is Sleep Specialist (PhD) a thin NUCC code in NPPES?
Only 38 NPIs list Sleep Specialist (PhD) as primary taxonomy across 18 states (peak Texas, 8). That is 589th of 688 NUCC codes by headcount. Thin codes are still searchable by NPI; do not treat the low count as a quality signal.
Do the few Sleep Specialist (PhD) NPIs in Open Payments look unusual?
CMS Open Payments 2024 lists 2 paid Sleep Specialist (PhD) physicians totaling $1K (49 payments; average $592, 276th of 470 by average). Presence is not a quality judgment; thin specialties often have sparse payment rows.
How much Part D prescribing does this specialty do?
Among Sleep Specialist (PhD) NPIs, 5 appear in the Medicare Part D Prescriber PUF (average 934 claims and $236K drug cost per prescriber; 85th of 496 specialties by average claims). Non-prescribing clinicians in the same NUCC code are still in NPPES.
Source: CMS National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES), file of Aug 9, 2026 (NPPES files on CMS.gov); NUCC Health Care Provider Taxonomy (nucc.org); Medicare Part D Prescriber PUF; CMS Open Payments 2024. Counts are self-designated primary taxonomy, not board certification.
Figures on PlainDoctor are read from the federal files each page names (CMS NPPES, Medicare Part D, MIPS, Open Payments; the HHS-OIG exclusion list only as counts) and from Census population estimates, with the file date shown beside them. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of Aug 9, 2026.