A new law in Colorado will require physicians to complete 30 hours of continuing medical education (CME) every 24 months as a condition for renewing, reinstating, or reactivating their medical licenses. The measure, House Bill HB24-1153 Physician Continuing Education, was signed into law by Governor Jared Polis on June 4, 2024 and took effect August 7, 2024.
Physicians can select CME topics themselves but may also need to include subjects specified by the Colorado Medical Board (CMB). The CMB has started a stakeholder process to consider requiring credit hours related to health disparities and outcomes data; reproductive, sexual, and gender-based health care; and explicit and implicit bias.
Doctors must confirm on their license renewal forms that they have fulfilled the CME requirement. Each year, up to five percent of physician renewals may be audited at random. If selected for audit, physicians are required to submit proof of completed CME programs and awarded credit hours. Not complying with an audit without reasonable cause is considered unprofessional conduct and will result in the physician’s license becoming inactive until it is reinstated by the board.
Fees associated with physician licensure renewals may be increased by the director of the division of professions and occupations within the department of regulatory agencies to cover additional costs linked to implementing these requirements.
Board-certified physicians can use CME credits reported for Maintenance of Certification or Continuing Certification recertification towards their state license renewal.
The new requirements will apply starting with the 2027 license renewal cycle.
