NCCPA Certification Maintenance: Requirements
The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) certification maintenance process includes five two-year cycles. In each of these cycles, certified PAs must earn 100 CME credits online and submit a certification maintenance fee by the end of the calendar year in which their certification expires. In addition, recertifying PAs must participate in one of two exam requirements: PANRE or PANRE-LA.
The table below outlines the differences in each option:
| PANRE: | PANRE-LA: |
| Exam administered in one 5-hour session | Shorter exams administered quarterly over three years |
| Exam taken from a Pearson VUE test center | Exams completed at participants convenience and on personal devices |
| Consists of 240 multiple-choice questions | Consists of 25 questions per quarter; timed at 5 minutes per question |
| Scores available in 2 weeks | Immediate feedback provided; score is based on 8 quarters of questions |
PA Certification Maintenance CME requirements
CME consists of educational activities that enable PAs to further develop their knowledge and skills. Here are a few things to note about the new CME requirements for PA certification maintenance:
- At least 50 of the 100 biannual CME credits required must be Category 1. The other 50 credits can be Category 1, Category 2, or a combination of both.
- NCCPA has 2 categories of CME that are not required but are weighted heavily by the NCCPA: self-assessment and performance improvement (PI-CME).
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AAPA Self-Assessment CME Credit
This activity has been reviewed by the AAPA Review Panel and is compliant with AAPA CME Criteria. This activity is designated for 225 AAPA Category 1 Self-Assessment CME credits. PAs should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation. Approval is valid from 6/1/2023 to 6/1/2024. AAPA reference number: 209296.
For NCCPA certification maintenance ONLY: NCCPA will now apply an additional 50 percent weighting when these self-assessment credits are logged for NCCPA certification maintenance purposes. PAs should log up to a maximum of 225 AAPA Category 1 Self-Assessment CME credits, as the additional weighting will be automatically applied by NCCPA.
Method of Participation: You must answer 10 questions correctly to receive AAPA Category 1 Self-Assessment CME Credits.