PA CME requirements in 2026: NCCPA, state licenses and how to track your hours

PA CME requirements for 2026: NCCPA's 100-credit cycle, PANRE-LA, state license rules in 12 states, the DEA MATE Act and how to track your hours.

By Shift CME · June 30, 2026 · 10 min read
Updated October 2026

Updated October 2026 using the sources below. This is a planning summary, not an individualized compliance review. Confirm your cycle, exemptions and required topics with your board before renewal.

You precepted a student on Tuesday. On Wednesday you finished a self-assessment module in the parking garage, and on Thursday night a new anticoagulant guideline ate 45 minutes. That's a good week of learning. Whether it counts depends on where you wrote it down.

Physician assistants/associates (PAs) answer to several scorekeepers: NCCPA, which keeps your PA-C; the state board that issues your license; the DEA, if you prescribe controlled substances; and your employer. Here's how they fit together in 2026.

PA CME requirements at a glance

To keep NCCPA certification, you need 100 CME credits every two years. At least 50 must be Category 1, and the rest can be Category 1, Category 2 or a mix. You log them and pay a $180 fee by 11:59 p.m. PT on December 31 of your certification expiration year. You also pass PANRE or PANRE-LA once every 10 years. State license rules are separate, and many states accept current NCCPA certification as meeting their CME hours, though they often add required topics such as opioid prescribing.

NCCPA certification maintenance: the 2-year cycle

According to NCCPA, certification maintenance is a 10-year process made of five two-year cycles. In each cycle you earn and log at least 100 credits (50 or more Category 1) and pay the $180 maintenance fee. For an ongoing cycle, your earning window opens May 1 of the certification issue year and closes December 31 of the expiration year. For newly certified PAs, the first window starts on the initial certification date. Credits don't carry over from a closed cycle.

NCCPA no longer requires self-assessment (SA) or performance improvement (PI) CME, but it still rewards both. SA credits are multiplied by 1.5, and the first 20 PI-CME credits each cycle count double.

PANRE and PANRE-LA: the 10-year checkpoint

You must pass a recertification exam by the end of year 10. Both options cost $350 and use the same blueprint (NCCPA).

PANRE and PANRE-LA: the 10-year checkpoint
	PANRE	PANRE-LA
Format	One proctored sitting at a Pearson VUE center	25 questions per quarter on your own device, 5 minutes each. You may use references but not consult other people.
When	Year 9 or 10	Apply in year 6, then answer over up to 12 quarters in years 7–9. Your best 8 quarters are scored.
CME	None for the exam itself, but study time can be logged as Category 2	2 Category 1 SA credits per completed quarter, which NCCPA logs as 3

NCCPA lists both options; confirm dates and current instructions in your portal. If PANRE-LA doesn't go your way, you still have PANRE attempts in year 10.

Category 1 vs. Category 2 CME for PAs

What counts as NCCPA Category 1

NCCPA accepts Category 1 credit designated by AAPA (including AAPA-preapproved certification programs such as ACLS), AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ from ACCME-accredited providers or state medical societies, AOA Category 1-A, and AAFP Prescribed credit. It also accepts EACCME, Royal College MOC, CFPC Mainpro+ and PACCC credit. Activities that award only contact hours or CEUs usually don't count as Category 1, but NCCPA's FAQs say they can be logged as Category 2.

What counts as Category 2

NCCPA defines Category 2 as any educational activity related to medicine, patient care or the role of the PA that wasn't designated for Category 1. You earn it hour for hour, and no single activity has a maximum. Its FAQs mention journal reading, precepting, preparing and giving lectures, qualifying committee work, and studying for PANRE.

What NCCPA expects you to document

Each year NCCPA randomly audits Category 1 credits. Selected PAs have about six weeks to send certificates or transcripts. If you fail, you go into a second audit: you replace any credits that couldn't be verified and pay a re-audit fee, or your certification lapses. Keep Category 1 documentation for your current and previous cycles.

Category 2 is different. NCCPA says it does not audit Category 2 CME, and notes that state boards may have their own audit rules. Self-claimed hours can still be checked, just not by NCCPA: by a state board, your employer's allowance office or your accountant. A dated log with the activity, topic, time spent and a one-line takeaway is cheap insurance.

State PA license renewal: common patterns

NCCPA certifies you. Your state licenses you, and each state sets its own rules. Most of them follow one of four patterns:

NCCPA certification satisfies the hours. California, Texas, North Carolina and Washington accept current NCCPA certification in place of their general CME hours. Florida does the same for most of its hours.
NCCPA certification is the requirement. Pennsylvania and Ohio require you to stay NCCPA certified, or to meet NCCPA's CME, in order to renew.
The state sets its own requirements. Illinois and Georgia have PA-specific continuing-education rules. Check their current requirements rather than assuming NCCPA certification alone is enough.
No general hours at all. Michigan and New York have no general CME hours for PA renewal. They require specific trainings instead.

Almost every state also requires specific topics. Opioid and controlled-substance prescribing is the most common, usually for PAs who prescribe. Implicit bias, human trafficking, child abuse, medical errors and infection control show up too. NCCPA certification often covers the hours but not these topics, so check them separately.

PA CME requirements by state: 12 examples

These examples point to board guidance and rules, with selected October 2026 updates. They are not an exhaustive topic or exemption checklist. Confirm your requirements directly before renewal.

PA CME requirements by state: 12 examples
State	Cycle and hours	Does NCCPA certification satisfy it?	Required topics (highlights)
California	2 years, 50 hours of approved Category I CME	Yes. Current NCCPA certification satisfies the CME requirement.	Courses with a patient-care component must include implicit bias content. For PAs providing primary care, if over 25% of your patients are 65 or older, at least 20% of hours go to geriatrics. (PAB)
Texas	2 years, 40 hours, at least 20 of them formal Category I	Yes for the hours. PAs maintaining NCCPA certification are presumed to have met them.	2 hours of opioid/pain management when a prescriptive agreement authorizes opioids or the PA accesses the PMP. Human trafficking course every renewal for direct patient care. Nutrition training applies to expirations on or after May 30, 2027; forensic-evidence training for ER/urgent-care PAs starts with February 28, 2027 expirations. Texas requires CE Broker tracking from September 1, 2026. (TMB, 22 TAC §183.16)
Florida	2 years, 100 hours, at least 50 Category I	Partly. An NCCPA certificate counts for 98 general hours (97 at first renewal); required topic courses still apply.	2 hours medical errors. 2 hours domestic violence every third biennium. 1 hour HIV/AIDS at first renewal. Prescribing PAs need 10 hours in each supervising physician's specialty area, including 3 on safe controlled-substance prescribing. (FL Board of Medicine)
New York	3-year registration, no general CME hours	Not applicable	Infection control every 4 years. One-time child abuse training. DEA registrants need 3 hours of pain management, palliative care and addiction every 3 years. (NYSED, NYSDOH prescriber education)
Pennsylvania	2 years. CME as required by NCCPA.	National certification must be maintained under the board's recognized-certification rule; CME follows NCCPA requirements.	2 hours child abuse recognition for all PAs. 2 hours pain management, addiction or opioid prescribing for PAs with prescriptive authority who use their own or another entity's DEA number. (49 Pa. Code §18.145)
Illinois	2 years; consult the board's current PA continuing-education rule for hours and accepted categories.	Not stated in the rule. NCCPA's categories define what counts.	Check the current PA rule and IDFPR guidance for sexual-harassment prevention, implicit bias, dementia and controlled-substance training, including applicability and frequency. (Illinois PA rule, IDFPR opioid FAQ)
Ohio	2 years. Meet NCCPA's CME.	Required. You certify that you've maintained NCCPA certification and its CME.	PAs with prescriptive authority need 12 hours of pharmacology every 2 years. (ORC 4730.14, ORC 4730.49)
Georgia	2-year renewal; confirm current hours and specialty-specific requirements with the Georgia Composite Medical Board.	Not listed as a substitute in the rule	Prescribers should verify pharmaceutical and opioid-training requirements directly with the board. (Georgia Composite Medical Board, rule reference: 360-5-.07)
North Carolina	Annual renewal. 50 hours of Category I every 2 years.	Yes. NCCPA-certified PAs are deemed in compliance with the hours.	Controlled-substance prescribers need 2 hours of controlled-substance prescribing every 2 years, and NCCPA certification doesn't cover this. MATE Act training can count. (NC Medical Board CME FAQ and special-topic FAQ)
Michigan	3-year license, no general CE	Not applicable	1 hour of implicit bias for each year of the license. One-time human trafficking training. Opioid and controlled-substance awareness training for controlled-substance licensees. (LARA)
Washington	2 years, 100 hours, at least 40 Category I	Yes. The commission accepts current NCCPA certification in lieu of the hours.	One-time 6 hours of suicide assessment and management, with limited-contact exemptions. One-time 1 hour on opioid prescribing for opioid prescribers. 2 hours of health equity every 4 years. (WAC 246-918-180, -185, -195, -825)
Arizona	2 years (by your birthday), 40 hours of Category I	Yes. Deemed satisfied by certification in good standing from a board-approved certifying body.	3 hours of opioid, substance use disorder or addiction CME each cycle for PAs with a DEA registration who are authorized to prescribe Schedule II drugs. (A.R.S. 32-2523, AZ PA Board)

Licensed in several states? You have to meet each state's topics. Often one well-chosen opioid course covers several states at once.

The DEA MATE Act: a one-time 8 hours

DEA registrants have one more item: a one-time, 8-hour training on treating and managing patients with opioid or other substance use disorders. According to the DEA's MATE Act guidance:

When it's due: you attest by checking a box on your first DEA registration or renewal submitted on or after June 27, 2023. Later renewals don't ask again.
Recent-graduate pathway: DEA guidance provides a pathway for eligible applicants who graduated from an accredited U.S. PA program during the past five years and completed at least 8 hours of qualifying substance-use-disorder curriculum. Confirm the criteria when submitting your application; do not rely on graduation date alone.
What counts: 8 hours from approved providers such as AAPA, the AMA or ACCME-accredited organizations. You can split the hours across sessions, and earlier training counts.

Some states, such as North Carolina, let MATE training count toward their own opioid hours. Check before counting the same hours twice.

What employers and credentialing committees expect

Your hospital or group usually checks two things:

Current NCCPA certification. Employers and payers often expect it even where the state doesn't, and credentialing staff often verify it online at hire and at reappointment.
Your CME allowance rules. These are your employer's own. Some cover only accredited courses, while others cover documented learning, including travel to study. Get the policy in writing and keep receipts and records. See how to use your CME allowance before it expires.

How to track your PA CME hours

Keeping track is mostly habit. A system that holds up:

Write down every deadline: your NCCPA cycle end, each state license, your DEA renewal and your employer's allowance year.
Log Category 1 in the NCCPA Portal when you earn it, and upload the certificate at the same time. Then an audit means clicking a link, not searching your email.
Log Category 2 the same week it happens, with the date, activity, topic, time spent and a takeaway.
Do required topics early. They're what holds up renewals.
Run a check in October, while there's still time to fill gaps. The year-end CME checklist walks you through it.

A useful record for self-directed learning

Keep the date, subject, learning resources, time actually spent and a short takeaway for independent study. Record participation separately from credit awarded by an accredited provider. Before purchasing a learning service, confirm professional eligibility, the credit category offered and whether your board and employer accept it.

PA CME FAQ

How many CME credits do PAs need?

For NCCPA, you need 100 credits every two years, at least 50 of them Category 1. Your state license may add hours or required topics, but many states accept current NCCPA certification for the hours.

Does NCCPA have an opioid CME requirement?

As of October 2026, NCCPA's CME rules don't require any specific topic. Opioid requirements come from states and from the DEA's one-time 8-hour MATE Act training. Hours you complete for those can also count toward your NCCPA total when they carry the right category.

Does reading journal articles count as CME for PAs?

Yes, as Category 2, logged hour for hour, if it relates to medicine, patient care or your role as a PA. If the article was certified for Category 1, claim it as Category 1 instead.

Does NCCPA audit Category 2 CME?

No. NCCPA audits Category 1 credits only. But your state board, your employer or your accountant may still want to see your records, so keep a dated log anyway.

Sources

Keep your renewal plan current

Confirm your NCCPA cycle and each state license deadline, then keep certificates and a dated learning log together. Requirements and topic-specific exceptions can change; your board's current instructions control.

Membership is $999 a year (introductory price), plus applicable tax, or $349 for a single conference.

Review NCCPA CME requirements Use the year-end checklist