Massachusetts physician (MD and DO) CME requirements for license renewal

Massachusetts licenses both MDs and DOs through one board, the Board of Registration in Medicine (BORIM). The rules below apply to both. The Board's own website (mass.gov) blocked automated access when this guide was checked. The facts below come from the regulation, the statutes, the Board's pilot program policy (as hosted by the Massachusetts Medical Society) and the FSMB's August 2026 overview. Check the Board's page before relying on any number here.

The short version

Requirement	Credits	How often	Who
Total CME	50	Every two-year renewal	Every full licensee
Risk management	10	Every renewal	Every full licensee
Study of the Board's regulations (243 CMR 1.00–3.00)	2	Every renewal	Every full licensee
Opioid education and pain management	3	Every renewal	Physicians who prescribe controlled substances
Implicit bias in health care	2	Every renewal (see below)	Every full licensee
End-of-life care	2	One time	Every full licensee
Electronic health records proficiency	3 credits, or another qualifying route	One time	Renewing full licensees
Alzheimer's disease and related dementias	No length set in law	One time	Physicians who serve adult populations
Child abuse and neglect recognition and reporting	No length set	One time	Every licensee
Domestic violence and sexual violence	No length set; Board/DPH-identified programs	One time	Every licensee

The regulations, opioid, end-of-life, implicit bias and EHR credits may be applied toward the 10 risk management credits. All of them count within the 50.

How many credits, and what kind

The regulation, 243 CMR 2.06(6)(a), still says 100 credits every two years, at least 40 of them Category 1. But the Board's Policy 2017-05, "A CME Pilot Program," began January 1, 2018 and "will be in effect until the Board promulgates a new regulation incorporating the subject matter of this Policy." It "sets the minimum mandatory CME requirement as 50 credits for a biennial licensing period." The FSMB's August 2026 overview lists Massachusetts at 50 credits every two years, either Category 1 or 2, under that policy.

Under the policy, credits "shall be earned from an organization accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the American Osteopathic Association (AOA), the American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) or a state medical society recognized by the ACCME or from material used for point of care." You may claim 1 credit per hour of reading a journal or a point-of-care resource while caring for patients or updating clinical knowledge. Alternative formats such as practice audits, HEDIS reports and MACRA measures also count.

The regulation itself names "AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™; AAFP Prescribed credit or AOA Category 1-A" as Category 1 examples. So AAFP Prescribed credit is accepted in Massachusetts.

A majority of your credits should relate directly to your primary area or areas of practice (243 CMR 2.06(6)(h)1).

When your license expires

Under M.G.L. c. 112, s. 2, physicians renew "on or before his or her birthday" every second year. Which years apply depends on when you were first licensed. If your birthday falls within three months after your original registration, your first renewal is on your birthday in the second year after that. A February 29 birthday counts as February 28. Under 243 CMR 2.06(2)(a), a license that has not been renewed "expires at 11:59 P.M. on the renewal date" (Eastern Time). The Board mails a renewal application 60 days before the renewal date.

CME is counted over "each two year period that begins on the date that his or her license is issued or renewed by the Board and ends on the following renewal date." Credits do not carry over.

The required topics

Risk management: 10 credits every renewal

Under the pilot policy these may be Category 1 or 2. The 2020 regulation had required at least 4 in Category 1. 243 CMR 2.01 defines risk management study as "instruction in medical malpractice prevention, such as risk identification, patient safety, and medical error prevention." It may include medical ethics, quality assurance, medical-legal issues, patient relations, EHR education, end-of-life care and practice management. The policy notes that Board Policy 19-02 lets you count up to 7 credits in physician wellness or burnout.

Study of the Board's regulations: 2 credits every renewal

243 CMR 2.06(6)(a)4 requires "two credits in either Category 1 or 2 studying 243 CMR 1.00 through 3.00." The pilot policy words it as "2 CME credits for studying each chapter of the Board's regulations." Confirm with the Board whether that means 2 in total or 2 per chapter. These credits may count toward risk management.

Opioid education and pain management: 3 credits every renewal, if you prescribe controlled substances

243 CMR 2.06(6)(d) requires renewing licensees who prescribe controlled substances to complete three credits each renewal. The training must include "how to identify patients at high risk for substance abuse and training in how to counsel patients on the side effects, addictive nature and proper storage and disposal of prescription medicines." It may count toward risk management.

The federal DEA requirement is separate. Since June 27, 2023, the MATE Act has required DEA-registered practitioners to complete a one-time, 8-hour training on treating and managing patients with opioid or other substance use disorders. It is not a Massachusetts licensing requirement.

Implicit bias in health care: 2 credits

The FSMB and the Massachusetts Medical Society report Board Policy 2021-04: "Beginning June 1, 2022, BORIM will require that applicants for initial physician licensure and licensees renewing physician licensure complete a continuing medical education requirement of 2.00 credits on the topic of implicit bias in healthcare." The credits may count toward risk management. The policy text itself could not be retrieved, so confirm with the Board that it applies at every renewal.

End-of-life care: 2 credits, one time

243 CMR 2.06(6)(b) and the pilot policy require two credits, Category 1 or 2, completed once. They may count toward risk management.

Electronic health records proficiency: one time

M.G.L. c. 112, s. 2 and 243 CMR 2.06(2)(d) require renewing full licensees to demonstrate EHR proficiency once. You can do this in any one of four ways:

participate in a Meaningful Use program;
work for, be credentialed by or contract with a hospital that has implemented an EHR;
participate in the Mass HIway;
complete three Category 1 EHR credits, which may count toward risk management.

Administrative, volunteer and inactive licensees, and licensees not practicing medicine, are exempt.

Alzheimer's disease and related dementias: one time, adult populations

M.G.L. c. 112, s. 2 requires "the 1–time completion of a course of training and education on the diagnosis, treatment and care of patients with cognitive impairments, including, but not limited to, Alzheimer's disease and dementia," for "physicians who serve adult populations." The statute sets no length. The Massachusetts Medical Society reports a minimum of 1 credit.

Child abuse and neglect: one time

M.G.L. c. 119, s. 51A(k) and 243 CMR 2.06(2)(g) require one-time training in recognizing and reporting suspected child abuse and neglect. Any of these counts: a hospital-sponsored program, CME on identifying and reporting child abuse and neglect, a Board-approved online program, or a specialized certification.

Domestic violence and sexual violence: one time

M.G.L. c. 112, s. 264 and 243 CMR 2.06(2)(e) require this training once. The Board, with the Department of Public Health, identifies the programs that qualify. The Massachusetts Medical Society notes that only a DPH-approved course fulfills it.

Your first renewal

243 CMR 2.06(6)(g)1 says a newly licensed physician whose first renewal period is "one year or shorter" need not earn any CME for it. A period "longer than one year but shorter than two years" requires "one half of the basic biennial CME requirement." That rule was written when the biennial requirement was 100 credits. Confirm with the Board how it applies under the 50-credit policy. Residents and fellows in ACGME- or AOA-approved programs are exempt from the basic requirement while enrolled (243 CMR 2.06(6)(f)).

Reporting and record keeping

Under the pilot policy, licensees "attest, under the pains and penalties of perjury, that they have completed each activity" on the renewal application. Certificates are not submitted. Keep a written record of Category 1 credits with each certificate of attendance, and a record of approximate hours for Category 2. Keep them for "no less than one full license renewal cycle after the credits have been earned," and have them available for Board inspection (243 CMR 2.06(6)(h)2).

Checklist before you renew

Count at least 50 credits earned since your last renewal (or since your license was issued).
Confirm 10 risk management credits, including 2 on the Board's regulations.
If you prescribe controlled substances, confirm 3 opioid education and pain management credits.
Confirm 2 implicit bias credits.
Confirm the one-time items: end-of-life care, EHR proficiency, Alzheimer's training (if you serve adults), child abuse and neglect, and domestic and sexual violence training.
Renew before 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on your birthday in your renewal year.

Requirements change. This guide was checked against the sources below in October 2026; confirm with the Board before you rely on it.