Utah MD CME requirements

At a glance: MD (medical doctor)

Hours

40 hours every 2 years

Renewal cycle

Every 2 years

Deadline

January 31 of even-numbered years (next: January 31, 2028)

Required topics

3

Hours carry over

No

First renewal

Confirm with your Board Utah Code 58-67-304(2): if a renewal period is shortened or extended, the CE hours increase or decrease proportionally. A first license issued partway through a cycle should therefore need fewer hours, but DOPL does not publish the formula; confirm your number with DOPL.

Credit minimum

R156-67-304(1): at least 34 of the 40 hours in ACCME category 1 offerings. Up to 6 hours may come from the Division, up to 15% from documented volunteer health care (1 hour per 4 hours of service), and residency counts pro rata.

Reporting

You attest at renewal. Keep documentation that proves compliance for two years after the end of the licensure cycle for which the CME is due (R156-67-304(4)); a CME Self Reporting Log may be part of it. CE is counted in 50-minute hours.

Board

Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL), Physicians Licensing Board

DOPL: physician licenses expire on January 31 of even years; DOPL emails a renewal notice at least 60 days before. R156-67-303 sets a two-year renewal cycle (dates in R156-1-308a). R156-67-304(1): at least 40 hours during each two-year licensure cycle.

Deadline

• January 31, 2028

Find your Utah MD deadline and add it to your calendar

Required topics

• Suicide prevention training (one DOPL online module) Confirm with your Board0.5 hours · Every renewal · Every licensee
  DOPL's renewal page lists completing at least one of three online suicide prevention trainings (Suicide Safety Planning with Patients, Talking to Patients About Suicide, or Counseling on Access to Lethal Means; 0.5 credit each, counted as CE) as a renewal requirement. The basis is Utah Code 58-1-601 and Utah Admin. Code R156-1-601: primary care providers may meet up to 10 CE hours with the Division's suicide prevention videos or other "Division-approved" suicide prevention materials or courses (CALM training, the DHHS Suicide Prevention Summit); only those count. The rule does not state a frequency or whether every physician must take it, so confirm with DOPL (le.utah.gov could not be opened on 2026-10-08).
• Controlled substance prescribing (Division-approved course)3.5 hours · Every renewal · Physicians registered with the DEA
  Utah Code 58-37-303 (formerly 58-37-6.5, renumbered May 6, 2026): each controlled substance prescriber (a Utah controlled substance license with Schedule II or III authority) completes at least 3.5 hours each licensing period in Division-approved classes that qualify for AMA PRA Category 1 Credit, with a post-course knowledge assessment. Content includes the FDA opioid REMS blueprint, Utah resources, documentation, office policies and some medical cannabis training. The hours count toward the 40. In the period you complete the SBIRT class, it satisfies this requirement. Utah Admin. Code R156-37-402: only classes delivered by an accredited or approved provider recognized by the Division count — DOPL publishes the list ("Approved Continuing Education for Prescribers", v.2026.07.28); each class must verify attendance and end with a post-course knowledge assessment; hours count in blocks of at least 50 minutes. A separate 0.5-hour controlled substance database tutorial and test (Utah Code 58-37f-304) may be waived by attesting on renewal that you used the database in the prior period.
• SBIRT (screening, brief intervention and referral to treatment) training3.5 hours · Once · Physicians registered with the DEA
  Utah Code 58-37-303: beginning with the licensing period after January 1, 2024, each controlled substance prescriber completes a 3.5-hour SBIRT class once during their Utah licensure. It fulfills the 3.5-hour controlled substance requirement for the period in which it is completed. R156-37-402: the SBIRT class must be one the Division has approved and posted (DOPL's list names the Substance Education Institute's 3.5-hour SBIRT course).

Credit that counts

• AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™R156-67-304(1)(a): at least 34 hours in category 1 offerings as established by the ACCME.
• AAFP Prescribed credit Confirm with your BoardNot named. AAFP Prescribed credit from an ACCME-accredited provider appears to fit ACCME category 1 offerings; confirm before counting it toward the 34 hours.
• AOA Category 1-A Confirm with your BoardThe MD rule names only ACCME category 1. AOA credit may count among the remaining 6 hours of relevant CE (R156-67-304(2)); confirm with DOPL.