West Virginia MD CME requirements

At a glance: MD (medical doctor)

Hours

50 hours every 2 years

Renewal cycle

Every 2 years

Deadline

June 30 (renew before July 1; the Board posts the exact deadline on its website)

Required topics

2

Hours carry over

No

First renewal

Confirm with your Board Neither 11 CSR 6 nor 11 CSR 1A waives or prorates CME for a first renewal. An initial license is issued with the expiration date of your last-name group (11 CSR 1A §10.1), so the first period can be shorter than two years; confirm with the Board how many hours it expects.

Reporting

You certify completion on the renewal application (11 CSR 6 §5). The Board may audit; if asked, send documentation within 30 days, and failing to do so is treated as prima facie evidence of fraudulent renewal (§6.3–6.4; W. Va. Code § 30-3-12(i)). Keep CME records for six years (§6.1).

Board

West Virginia Board of Medicine

11 CSR 1A §10.2: physicians whose last names begin with A–L renew before July 1 of every even year; M–Z before July 1 of every odd year. The CME reporting period is the two years before the renewal deadline (11 CSR 6 §2), e.g. July 1, 2025 to the 2027 renewal for M–Z. 11 CSR 6 §4.1.1: 50 hours of CME designated Category I by the AMA or the AAFP, at least 30 related to your specialty; up to 20 hours may be teaching medical students, lecturing, or precepting. Alternatives to the 50 hours: passing an ABMS certification or recertification exam, active ABMS maintenance of certification, or 12 months of ACGME training in the period — each still with 2 hours of nutrition CME. A license expires automatically if the CME certification is not received by the deadline.

Deadline

• June 30, 2027

  Last name M–Z

• June 30, 2028

  Last name A–L

Find your West Virginia MD deadline and add it to your calendar

Required topics

• Nutrition Confirm with your Board2 hours · Every renewal · Every licensee
  HB 4951 (2026) amended W. Va. Code § 30-3-12(d): the CME requirement "shall include completion of medical education in nutrition." The Board's emergency rule 11 CSR 6 (effective August 11, 2026) requires at least 2 of the 50 hours, Category I by the AMA or AAFP, on the role of nutrition in preventing, managing and treating disease and on using nutrition in clinical practice. The emergency rule is temporary while the Board seeks a permanent rule, and the Board's CME page has not yet been updated; confirm how it applies to the renewals due June 30, 2027.
• Risk assessment and responsible prescribing of controlled substances3 hours · Once · Only some physicians — see the rule note
  W. Va. Code § 30-1-7a(b) and 11 CSR 6 §3.1 and §7 (emergency rule effective August 11, 2026): within one year of receiving an initial West Virginia license, complete a 3-hour Board-approved course on Risk Assessment and Responsible Prescribing of Controlled Substances. Rule §2.18 lists the content: risk assessment and responding to diversion and drug-seeking behavior (assessment tools, West Virginia abuse statistics, MOUD and stigma), responsible prescribing (state and federal law, the West Virginia Controlled Substances Monitoring Program, chronic pain management, a case study, patients on multiple controlled substances) and prescribing and administering an opioid antagonist. Only courses on the Board's list count (§7): a sponsor asks in writing at least 30 days before the activity, and approval lasts one year. Waived if you do not prescribe, administer or dispense any controlled substance under a West Virginia license. It may count toward the CME for the period in which you took it. Since July 2026 this is no longer required every renewal: the statute (amended 2023) and the Board's rule now require it only after initial licensure. The Board's CME web page still says it "is not a one-time only requirement" for the 2026 renewals; the rule governs.

Credit that counts

• AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™11 CSR 6 §4.1.1 and W. Va. Code § 30-3-12(d): CME designated as Category I by the AMA.
• AAFP Prescribed credit11 CSR 6 §4.1.1 and W. Va. Code § 30-3-12(d): CME designated as Category I by the American Academy of Family Physicians counts.