South Carolina physician (MD and DO) CME requirements for license renewal

This guide covers physicians licensed by the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners, which licenses both MDs and DOs. Both follow the same statute, S.C. Code § 40-47-40.

The short version

Requirement	Hours	How often	Who
Total CME, all AMA or AOA Category 1	40	Every two-year renewal period	Every MD and DO
Related to your practice area (within the 40)	at least 30	Every renewal	Every MD and DO
Prescribing and monitoring controlled substances (within the 40)	2	Every renewal	Every MD and DO (content differs for non-prescribers)
Human trafficking awareness and prevention (within the 40)	1	By January 1, 2028, then every six years	Emergency, primary care, internal and family medicine, pediatrics, OB/GYN, hospitalists, and certain settings
License expires	—	June 30 of odd-numbered years (next: June 30, 2027)	Every MD and DO

How many hours, and what kind

S.C. Code § 40-47-40(2)(a) requires 40 hours of Category I CME during each renewal period, sponsored by the AMA, the AOA, or another organization the Board approves. At least 30 must relate directly to your practice area; the other 10 may be outside your specialty. The Board's summary says "All hours must be AMA/AOA Category 1 taken within the 2-year renewal period," and the CME must be finished before you renew. MDs may count AOA Category 1 credit and DOs may count AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™.

AAFP Prescribed credit is not named for the 40 hours. The statute also accepts organizations the Board approves, and the Board's 2024 statement on controlled-substance CME lists the AAFP among organizations whose certified CME counts for those 2 hours. The AMA treats AAFP Prescribed credit as equivalent to AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™, but confirm with the Board if most of your hours are AAFP Prescribed. The statute says AOA "Category I" without separating 1-A and 1-B; 1-B is part of AOA Category 1, so it appears to count.

Instead of the 40 hours, the statute accepts one of: certification of added qualifications or recertification by examination from an ABMS or AOA specialty board; completing an ACGME- or AOA-approved residency or fellowship in the United States or Canada; passing the SPEX or COMVEX; or a Board-approved clinical skills assessment (§ 40-47-40(2)(b)–(e)). Physicians may also claim up to 10 hours for volunteer medical services (S.C. Code § 38-79-30(B), as the Board describes it; you need a letter from the organization). Active-duty military licensees are exempt while serving (§ 40-1-610).

Hours do not carry over: the Board counts only CME from the 24 months before the renewal deadline.

When your license expires

All MD and DO licenses renew every two years in odd-numbered years, with a June 30 deadline. The current period is 2025–2027, so the next deadline is June 30, 2027. Renew online before then. Late renewals cannot be done online: you file a paper application with proof of CME and pay a $100 late fee for each month the license was lapsed, plus $1,000 for each month you practiced while lapsed (§ 40-47-43). After a year, you need a reactivation application.

The mandatory topics

Prescribing and monitoring controlled substances — 2 hours, every renewal

The statute says at least 2 of the 40 hours "may be related to approved procedures of prescribing and monitoring controlled substances listed in Schedules II, III, and IV," taken from an ACCME-recognized statewide accreditor or a provider accredited through an ACCME-accredited national organization, and that the renewal form must include a certificate for it. The Board treats it as required every renewal for every physician: its summary and renewal form say 2 hours "must" be in this subject.

In its April 2024 statement the Board said physicians who do not prescribe controlled substances may meet the 2 hours with accredited education on controlled substances generally (their use, abuse, diversion, addictive properties and treatment), while prescribers must still take prescribing-and-monitoring content. An ACCME- or AOA-approved course is required. Examples the Board gives include courses from the Federation of State Medical Boards, the South Carolina Medical Association, the AAFP, the ACP, and FDA REMS-compliant courses.

Human trafficking awareness and prevention — 1 hour, every six years

Act 106 of 2026 added S.C. Code § 40-47-39, effective March 9, 2026. Physicians practicing emergency medicine, primary care, internal medicine, family medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics, gynecology or as hospitalists, and those working in public health clinics, emergency departments, urgent care centers and community-based centers, must complete a 1-hour human trafficking course:

• licensed before January 1, 2026: before January 1, 2028, then every six years;
• first licensed on or after January 1, 2026: within two years of initial licensure, then every six years.

The course must cover identifying suspected trafficking victims, laws for reporting them, and care and support for potential victims, with content reviewed by the South Carolina Human Trafficking Task Force. It must come from an ACCME-recognized statewide accreditor, a provider approved through an ACCME-accredited national organization, or an organization the Board approves. The hour counts within the 40. The Board must adopt rules to carry this out; when this guide was checked it had not yet published rules or a course list, so confirm with the Board before you choose a course.

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) when you first register or renew a DEA registration. It is a federal requirement, separate from South Carolina's rules.

Your first renewal

You do not need CME for your first renewal. Under § 40-47-40(1), meeting the licensing requirements is enough for the first renewal after a permanent license is issued, and the Board says "licensees in their first renewal cycle are not required to complete CME." If you were first licensed on or after January 1, 2026 and the human trafficking course applies to you, it is due within two years of initial licensure.

Reporting and audits

The renewal application is a statement under oath in which you certify your CME. When renewing on time, do not send certificates; keep them, or track them in CE Broker (optional), in case of a random Board audit. Your proof should show the provider, course title, date, AMA or AOA Category 1 designation, hours and your name. The statute does not set a retention period for physicians, so keep certificates at least through the next renewal.

Checklist before you renew

1. Your deadline is June 30, 2027 (odd-numbered years).
2. Count 40 hours of AMA or AOA Category 1 CME from the last 24 months, at least 30 in your practice area.
3. Make sure 2 of those hours are accredited controlled-substance CME.
4. If your specialty or setting is covered, plan the 1-hour human trafficking course before January 1, 2028.
5. Keep your certificates in case you are audited.

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