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

Nevada has two physician licensing boards. MDs are licensed by the Nevada State Board of Medical Examiners; DOs are licensed by the Nevada State Board of Osteopathic Medicine. Both now require 40 hours every two years, but they renew on different dates, accept different credit and set some topics differently. DOs: your next renewal, December 31, 2026, is a transition year with its own rules. See below.

The short version

Requirement	MD (Board of Medical Examiners)	DO (Board of Osteopathic Medicine)
Total CME	40 hours every two years, all AMA PRA Category 1	40 hours every two years from 2027 (35 hours in 2026 for the December 31, 2026 renewal)
Credit minimum	All 40 AMA PRA Category 1; 20 in your scope of practice or specialty	At least 20 hours category 1A (AOA- or ACCME-accredited sponsor); 10 for the 2026 renewal
Ethics	2 hours every renewal (pain, addiction or SBIRT may substitute)	2 hours of ethics, pain management, addiction care or SBIRT every renewal
Opioids and addiction	2 hours every renewal if you hold a Nevada controlled substance registration	4 hours every renewal for every DO (2 for the 2026 renewal)
Suicide prevention	2 hours within 2 years of licensure, then every 4 years	Same
SBIRT	2 hours once, within 2 years of licensure	Same
Cultural competency, DEI	2 hours every renewal for psychiatrists	Same
HIV stigma and bias	2 hours once, within 2 years of starting emergency or primary care	Same
Weapons of mass destruction	One course within 2 years of licensure, on top of the 40	Not required
License due	June 30 of odd-numbered years	December 31 of even-numbered years

MDs: how many hours, and what kind

NAC 630.153 requires 40 hours of CME in the 2 years before each biennial registration. At least 2 hours must be in medical ethics, and 20 hours must be in your scope of practice or specialty. Every program must offer a certificate of AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™, be approved by the Board and be sponsored by an organization accredited by the AMA or the ACCME. The Board's summary puts it simply: all CME must be AMA Category 1 or Board approved.

AAFP Prescribed credit and AOA credit are not named. If a course does not also carry AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™, confirm with the Board before you count it.

Courses on geriatrics and gerontology, Alzheimer's disease and dementia, or the diagnosis of rare diseases earn double credit, up to 8 credit hours for 4 hours of time in a biennial period (NAC 630.155). Performing a medical review for the Board can earn up to 20 hours.

If you completed a full year of residency or fellowship in the United States or Canada during the period, you are exempt from the 40 hours (NAC 630.153(2)).

When your license is due

Every MD completes biennial registration on or before June 30 of each odd-numbered year, or the next business day if June 30 falls on a weekend or holiday (NRS 630.267). The next deadline is June 30, 2027. If you miss it, your license expires. You can be reinstated within 2 years by paying twice the registration fee and showing 40 hours of AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ from the previous 2 years.

DOs: how many hours, and what kind

AB 56 (2025) moved DO licenses from yearly to two-year renewal. NRS 633.471 now says you renew on or before December 31 of each even-numbered year, with at least 40 hours of Board-approved CME in the preceding two years. The Board's Adopted Regulation R092-25 rewrites NAC 633.250 to match:

Renewal on or before December 31, 2026: at least 35 hours attended during the preceding year, including at least 10 hours of category 1A and 2 hours on the misuse and abuse of controlled substances, opioid prescribing or addiction.
Renewals after December 31, 2026: at least 40 hours in the preceding two years, including at least 20 hours of category 1A and 4 hours on controlled substances, opioid prescribing or addiction.

"Category 1A" means a course offered by a sponsor accredited by the AOA or the ACCME (NAC 633.250(3)), so AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ from an ACCME-accredited provider counts toward it. The rest of the hours may be any Board-approved courses. The rule does not list them, so confirm with the Board before relying on AOA Category 1-B or AAFP Prescribed credit.

When this guide was checked, the online code still showed the older yearly text of NAC 633.250. The statute already requires 40 hours every two years. Confirm the 20-hour and 4-hour figures with the Board.

The mandatory topics

Ethics — 2 hours, every renewal

MD: 2 of the 40 hours in medical ethics (NAC 630.153). Up to 2 hours on pain management, care of people with addictive disorders, or SBIRT may substitute (NRS 630.253(8)).
DO: at least 2 hours each two-year period in ethics, pain management, care of people with addictive disorders, or SBIRT (NRS 633.471(7)).

Suicide prevention hours cannot count as ethics for either degree.

Opioids, controlled substances and addiction

MD: if you are registered to dispense controlled substances in Nevada (NRS 453.231), complete at least 2 hours each biennial period on people with substance use and other addictive disorders and opioid prescribing, as AMA Category 1 credit (NRS 630.2535; NAC 630.156). Physicians with a federal registration to treat opioid dependency are exempt for one period.
DO: every DO completes 4 hours each two-year period on the misuse and abuse of controlled substances, opioid prescribing or addiction (2 hours for the December 31, 2026 renewal).

Suicide prevention — 2 hours, within 2 years of licensure and every 4 years

Both boards require at least 2 hours of evidence-based suicide prevention and awareness within 2 years after initial licensure and every 4 years after that (NRS 630.253; NAC 630.1545; NRS 633.471; NAC 633.250(2)).

SBIRT — 2 hours, once

Both boards require at least 2 hours of training in the screening, brief intervention and referral to treatment approach to substance use disorder within 2 years after initial licensure (NRS 630.253(2)(c); NAC 630.156(2); NRS 633.471(11)). The MD board's summary says physicians licensed at the time had to finish it by the 2025 renewal.

Psychiatrists: cultural competency and DEI — 2 hours, every renewal

Psychiatrists complete at least 2 hours each period on cultural competency and diversity, equity and inclusion. The courses must address people of different backgrounds, including race, religion, LGBTQ identity, age, veteran status, mental illness and disability (NRS 630.253(2)(d); NAC 630.1567; NRS 633.471(12)).

Emergency and primary care: HIV stigma and bias — 2 hours, once

If you provide or supervise emergency medical services in a hospital, or primary care (family medicine, pediatrics, internal medicine, or obstetrics and gynecology), complete at least 2 hours on stigma, discrimination and unrecognized bias toward people who have, or are at high risk of, HIV. Complete it within 2 years after you begin that work (NRS 630.253(2)(f); NAC 630.1563; NRS 633.471(13)).

MDs: weapons of mass destruction — one course

NAC 630.154 requires MDs to complete a course on the medical consequences of an act of terrorism involving a weapon of mass destruction within 2 years of initial licensure. It must carry AMA Category 1 credit and is in addition to the 40 hours. Training received in the military or as a public health officer after January 1, 2002 counts. The rule does not set a number of hours; confirm with the Board what course length it accepts.

Encouraged, not required

Nevada law encourages, but does not require, CME on geriatrics, teaching patients to manage medications, and the diagnosis of rare diseases, including pediatric cancer.

Federal requirement

The federal DEA requires a one-time 8-hour training on treating and managing patients with opioid or other substance use disorders (the MATE Act). It is a federal requirement, separate from Nevada's rules.

Your first renewal

MD: the hours are prorated by when you were licensed in the two-year period (NAC 630.157): 40 hours if licensed in the first 6 months, 30 in the second 6 months, 20 in the third and 10 in the fourth. The Board's summary keeps the 2-hour ethics and topic hours at every level.
DO: neither the statute nor NAC 633.250 prorates CME for a first renewal. Confirm with the Board.

Reporting and audits

MD: at biennial registration you submit evidence of your CME in the form the Board requires. If you do not, the license is not renewed. Failing to complete the required controlled substance training is grounds for discipline.
DO: you attest to and provide proof of your CME at renewal. The Board asks a percentage of licensees for verified evidence each renewal, and its newsletter says licensees now upload CME certificates in the licensee portal. If you fall short because of disability, military service, absence from the United States or circumstances beyond your control, you can ask for a waiver.

Checklist before you renew

MD: count 40 hours of AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ from the two years before June 30, 2027, including 2 in ethics and 20 in your specialty.
DO renewing by December 31, 2026: count 35 hours from 2026, including 10 category 1A and 2 on controlled substances or addiction. After that, plan 40 hours every two years with 20 category 1A and 4 on controlled substances.
Check the one-time and periodic topics: suicide prevention (every 4 years), SBIRT, and HIV bias training if you work in emergency or primary care. MDs also need the weapons of mass destruction course.
Psychiatrists: include 2 hours of cultural competency and DEI.
Keep every certificate in case you are audited.

Requirements change. This guide was checked against the sources below on October 7, 2026; confirm with the Board before you rely on it.