Physician Assistant License Renewal and CME Requirements
Newly licensed physician assistants are not required to report CME until one year after their initial licensure or after their first license renewal, whichever occurs first. Thereafter, each applicant for renewal must have successfully earned at least twenty (20) Category I CME hours during the preceding calendar year (January 1 to December 31st). At least one (1) hour of Category I CME must be earned each calendar year concerning the topic of substance abuse. Oklahoma does not require logging of Category II hours.
Deadline and How To Log CME for State Requirements
The deadline for members to log CME on the OAPA website is January 31st. As a benefit of membership, the OAPA will verify your CME logging and provide a report to the Oklahoma State Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision (OSBMLS) of PAs who have completed the CME requirements. The OSBMLS will automatically accept all Category I CME hours sponsored or approved by the OAPA. Also, attendees of the OAPA CME Conference will have their completed hours automatically logged with the OSBMLS.
Substance Abuse Requirement
Physician Assistants are required to have at least one (1) hour of Category I CME concerning the topic of substance abuse each calendar year. The OAPA provides a Category I CME on substance abuse each year that the OSBMLS will accept, which is recorded at the annual OAPA CME Conference. This CME can be purchased 7 to 10 days after the conference on the OAPA website.
CME Deficiencies
Any applicant for renewal who does not meet the continuing education requirements by December 31 of the previous calendar year may not renew until any deficiency is resolved and verified. Additionally, within the next calendar year, the licensee will be required to obtain an additional twenty (20) hours of Category I CME for a total of forty (40) hours of Category I CME. Failure to meet these additional requirements will result in further disciplinary action by the Medical Board.
CME Audits
Each year, the Oklahoma State Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision may randomly select licensees, or select them for a specific reason, to verify CME compliance. The OAPA will work directly with the Medical Board on behalf of the OAPA member who has logged their CME through the OAPA website in the event of an audit. Licensees who are NOT OAPA members, selected for an audit, will be notified and will have 30 calendar days from the date of the notice to submit proof of their CME hours. Logging with the OAPA ensures you remain in compliance. Penalties may be imposed for failure to meet CME requirements, as allowed by law.
Maintenance of Certification Logging
All PAs must self-log their hours with the NCCPA for maintenance of certification at www.NCCPA.net. The OAPA does participate in the NCCPA logging system for the Annual OAPA CME Conference. Therefore, attendees of the OAPA CME Conference can use the NCCPA Conference Logging Link, which is a simple process of clicking on the topics you attended. Plus, by logging your credits through the NCCPA Conference Logging Link, your credits are verified and thereby not audited by NCCPA.