National Board of Physicians and Surgeons (NBPAS)

The National Board of Physicians and Surgeons (NBPAS) is committed to providing certification that ensures physician compliance with national standards and promotes lifelong learning.

There is controversy surrounding the requirements for continued certification in a medical specialty. Many physicians believe recent changes requiring physicians engage in various medical knowledge, practice-assessment, and patient-safety activities as well as recertification exams do not provide optional use of physician's time. Furthermore, no high quality data exists to justify these labor intensive and expensive activities. NBPAS believes the following requirements provide the most appropriate metric for continued education:
• Previous certification by an ABMS member board
• Valid license to practice medicine
• At least 50 hours of ACCME accredited CME within the past 24 months
• For selected specialties, active hospital privileges
• Clinical privileges in certified specialty have not been previously revoked