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South Carolina CME Requirements (2026): Physicians, NPs, PAs, CRNAs & CAAs
South Carolina regulates five clinician professions through different boards, each with its own continuing-education rules — physicians (MD/DO), nurse practitioners (APRN/NP), physician assistants (PA), nurse anesthetists (CRNA), and anesthesiologist assistants (CAA, in the states that license them). Below, each profession's total hours, mandated topics, opioid/controlled-substance rule, and tracking, plus the one federal rule they share. Last reviewed 2026-08-24.
Physicians (MD / DO)
Set by the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners.
General CME: 40 hours every 2 years.
Opioid / controlled substance
2 hours per biennium — safe prescribing/monitoring of Schedule II–IV CS. Trigger: all physicians regardless of specialty.
✓ No board pre-approval gate: No board pre-approval — generic ACCME/AOA Category 1 accepted; the board posts an informational links page as a convenience, not a required registry.
All mandated CME topics
| Topic | Hours | Timing | Applies to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Controlled substances / opioid prescribing & monitoring | 2 | per 2-year cycle | all renewing (content differs for non-prescribers) |
| Human trafficking awareness & prevention | 1 | phased then every 6 years | EM/primary care/IM/FM/peds/OBGYN/hospitalist & clinic settings |
Citation: S.C. Code §40-47-40
Nurse Practitioners (APRN / NP)
Set by the South Carolina Board of Nursing (SC LLR) — separate from the physician rules above, with its own hours and topics.
General CE: None as fixed hours. APRN continued-competency requirement is an updated/current national certification from a Board-approved advanced practice certification organization (renewed biennially). No separate general contact-hour mandate for APRNs from the Board of Nursing.
Opioid / controlled substance
2 hours, every 2 years, for holders of controlled-substance prescriptive authority. Timing is built into the free multi-state planner.
All mandated CE topics
| Topic | Hours | Timing | Applies to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacology / pharmacotherapeutics (prescriptive authority) | 20 hours | per cycle | prescribers |
| Opioid / controlled-substance prescribing | 2 | Per biennial (2-year) renewal cycle; the 2 hours are a subset of the 20 required pharmacotherapeutics hours. | APRN holds prescriptive authority (RX / controlled substance authority). |
Tracking: CE Broker is the official CE tracking system of the SC Board of Nursing (self-report / provider-report). APRNs retain CE documentation in personal files and must produce within 72 hours if audited; not submitted to the Board unless requested.
Physician Assistants (PA)
Set by the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners (SC LLR) — separate from the physician rules above, with its own hours and topics.
General CE: PAs must maintain current NCCPA certification, which requires 100 CME hours per 2-year cycle (AMA PRA Category 1 / NCCPA-accepted). SC Board of Medical Examiners accepts ACCME-accredited Category 1 credit.
Opioid / controlled substance
4 hours, every 2 years, for holders of controlled-substance prescriptive authority. Timing is built into the free multi-state planner.
All mandated CE topics
| Topic | Hours | Timing | Applies to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacology / pharmacotherapeutics (prescriptive authority) | None | per cycle | prescribers |
| Opioid / controlled-substance prescribing | 4 | Every 2 years (per biennial renewal cycle) | PA authorized to prescribe controlled substances. |
| General CME (Category 1 / NCCPA certification maintenance) | 100 | Per 2-year cycle | All PAs |
| Human trafficking awareness & prevention | 1 | Initial licensure then every 6 years; licensees before 1/1/2026 by 1/1/2028, licensed on/after within 2 years | PAs in emergency medicine, primary care, internal medicine, family medicine, pediatrics, OB, GYN or hospitalist practice. IN ADDITION TO all other CE (S.C. Code 40-47-953) — unlike the physician rule, this hour does NOT count toward the general total. |
Tracking: SC Board of Medical Examiners has an official partnership with CE Broker for CE tracking. NCCPA CME is logged with NCCPA; controlled-substance CE documented for the Board/audit.
Nurse Anesthetists (CRNA)
Set by the South Carolina Board of Nursing (SC LLR) — APRN license, CRNA category (S.C. Code Ann. 40-33-20) — separate from the physician rules above, with its own hours and topics.
General CE: 'Competency for an APRN license is an updated National Certification' (SC BON Renewal FAQs). For APRNs with prescriptive authority: national certification 'in addition to 20 hours of Pharmacotherapeutics with 2 of the 20 hours focused on controlled substances' (Renewal FAQ; S.C. Code 40-33-34(E)). S.C. Code 40-33-34(H): 'Nothing in this section may be construed to require a CRNA to obtain prescriptive authority to deliver anesthesia care'; CRNAs practice under approved written guidelines developed with the supervising physician/dentist. Biennial renewal.
NBCRNA recertification is accepted in place of state CE. Current NBCRNA certification is the entire state continued-competency requirement for a CRNA without prescriptive authority (SC BON Renewal FAQ: competency = updated national certification). No separate contact-hour mandate. National layer: NBCRNA continued certification (4-year cycle: 60 Class A + 40 Class B credits, MAC Check).
Opioid / controlled substance
2 hours, every 2 years, for holders of controlled-substance prescriptive authority. Timing is built into the free multi-state planner.
All mandated CE topics
| Topic | Hours | Timing | Applies to |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacotherapeutics | 20 | per 2-year renewal cycle | Only if you hold prescriptive authority - reaches a CRNA only if the CRNA holds SC prescriptive authority (CRNAs practicing under 40-33-34(H) guidelines are outside it) |
| Controlled substances (subset of the pharmacotherapeutics hours) | 2 | per 2-year renewal cycle | Only if you hold prescriptive/controlled-substance authority - reaches a CRNA only if the CRNA holds SC prescriptive authority |
Tracking: CE Broker is the SC Board of Nursing's official CE tracking system; APRNs retain documentation in personal files and must produce it within 72 hours if audited (Renewal FAQ). National certification verified at renewal. Same as NP file.
Anesthesiologist Assistants (CAA)
Set by the South Carolina Board of Medical Examiners (LLR) — separate from the physician rules above, with its own hours and topics.
General CE: License 'must be renewed on or before the first of January of each licensure period' upon payment of the renewal fee and 'submission of documentation that the anesthesiologist's assistant certificate issued by the National Commission for Certification of Anesthesiologist's Assistants ... is active and current' (§ 40-47-1290). No separate state CME hours.
NCCAA recertification is accepted in place of state CE. Active NCCAA certification is the renewal standard. National layer: NCCAA certification (50 CME hours every 2 years — 40 anesthesia + 10 general — plus the CDQ exam).
Opioid / controlled substance
No standalone state opioid/controlled-substance CE mandate identified for this profession. The federal DEA MATE Act (one-time 8-hour training) still applies if you hold a DEA registration.
All mandated CE topics
No additional mandated topics identified beyond the total above.
Tracking: Documentation of NCCAA status submitted at renewal; LLR renewal portal.
Federal — DEA MATE Act (all professions)
One rule is the same for everyone below. Every DEA-registered prescriber — physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and any CRNA or CAA who holds a DEA registration — must complete a one-time 8-hour training on treating patients with opioid or other substance use disorders, as a condition of DEA registration/renewal (since June 27, 2023). It is federal, applies in every state, and does not replace South Carolina's recurring opioid/controlled-substance CME. A MATE-qualifying accredited course will usually still count toward your state general CME/CE total. How the MATE Act differs from state rules →
Authority: MATE Act §1263, Consolidated Appropriations Act 2023 (21 U.S.C. §823).
Pick your profession and all your states in the free planner and get one 5-year schedule that batches your opioid/controlled-substance CME so a single course covers as many licenses as possible.
Build my multi-state CME plan →This page summarizes South Carolina board rules and statutes as of 2026-08-24 for five separately-regulated professions: physicians (MD/DO), nurse practitioners (APRNs), physician assistants (PAs), nurse anesthetists (CRNAs), and anesthesiologist assistants (CAAs). Each is governed by its own board and its hour totals and mandated topics differ — never assume one profession's figures apply to another. Physician data is compiled from FSMB and state medical-board sources; APRN/PA data was validated against nursing- and PA/medical-board rules on 2026-07-20, with the opioid/controlled-substance timing structured on 2026-07-23; CRNA and CAA data was researched against nursing-board, medical-board and practice-act primary sources on 2026-08-24 (items the research could not pin to a primary source are flagged [VERIFY]). This is educational information, not legal advice — always verify current requirements with your own board before relying on them.