Does it feel like there’s never enough time for your professional development?

Your time and resources are limited, a pandemic has impacted travel and available options for in-person learning, and yet you still need to continue your medical education.

You deepen your clinical knowledge each time UpToDate helps you reach a patient care decision. You research conditions and drug information using the latest available evidence and research, which has been curated, analyzed, and integrated by clinicians recognized as leaders in their field. As you do this, UpToDate helps you fulfill continuing medical education (CME) requirements, including maintenance of certification (MOC). And by making it more convenient for you to earn credits in the US and various regions around the world, UpToDate enables you to spend more valued time with your patients.

Attention DEA-registered practitioners: fulfill new MATE Act requirements with UpToDate

Continuing education (CE) credits earned from reading certain UpToDate topics will meet the new eight-hour training requirement for Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)-registered practitioners (per the Medication Access and Training Expansion (MATE) Act). Please refer to the UpToDate Substance Use Disorders table of contents for eligible topics. Learn more about fulfilling MATE Act requirements with UpToDate.

UpToDate for your Continuing Medical Education

UpToDate offers a  variety of credits for physicians, physician assistants and nurse practitioners to fulfill licensing and Maintenance of Certification/Continuing Certification (MOC/CC) requirements for healthcare professionals practicing in the U.S. and globally.

With UpToDate, you can:

  • Answer clinical questions as they arise and earn credit at the same time1
  • Earn and redeem credit from your mobile devices, 24 hours a day, seven days a week2
  • Save time and money by fulfilling CME/CE/CPD requirements without leaving the office or home
  • Directly submit CME credits to several medical specialty boards for MOC and some state medical boards for licensure
  • Redeem credits for up to two years (unless otherwise noted) from the time the activity was completed

Information below focuses on continuing medical education options in the United States. For more details on CPD/CE programs outside the US, visit the CME/CE/CPD Accreditations page.

  1. Credit is offered at no additional cost with an individual subscription or through an EHR or other clinical system that has implemented the UpToDate integration API.
  2. CME/CE/CPD credit is not available with individual subscriptions purchased at trainee rates. Exclusions may also apply to selected subscription types in some areas.
  • Physicians
  • Physician Assistants
  • Nurse Practitioners / Nursing Professionals

UpToDate supports your state licensing and board certification efforts

Physicians can use the time they spend with UpToDate to meet state licensing and the MOC/CC requirements of several certifying boards. For some state medical and certifying boards, learner completion information is sent electronically (direct credit reporting). The recognition statements for participating boards in the US are listed below.

State Medical Boards

The following state medical boards participate in direct credit reporting. Submit CME credits electronically from within UpToDate to participating medical boards.

Maintenance of Certification (MOC)/Continuing Certification (CC) Boards

The following certifying boards accept credit earned from UpToDate to fulfill MOC/CC requirements. Those labeled with an asterisk (*) participate in direct credit reporting.

* Learn how to directly submit credit to these boards.



American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA) MOCA 2.0 Program

This activity contributes to the CME component of the American Board of Anesthesiology's redesigned Maintenance of Certification in Anesthesiology™ (MOCA®) program, known as MOCA 2.0®. Please consult the ABA website, www.theABA.org, for a list of all MOCA 2.0 requirements. (Direct credit reporting)

American Board of Dermatology (ABD) Maintenance of Certification Program

Dermatology related AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ earned from use of UpToDate may fulfill Part 2 CME Resources of the American Board of Dermatology MOC Program.

American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification Program

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 0.5 Medical Knowledge MOC points per Internet point-of-care activity in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC credit. (Direct credit reporting)

American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery (ABOHNS) Continuing Certification Program

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn their required annual part II self-assessment credit in the American Board of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery's Continuing Certification program (formerly known as MOC). It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of recognizing participation. (Direct credit reporting)

American Board of Pathology (ABPath) Continuing Certification Program

Successful completion of this CME activity enables the participant to earn up to 0.5 Lifelong Learning points per Internet point-of-care activity in the American Board of Pathology’s (ABPath) Continuing Certification program. Participants will earn points equivalent to the amount of CME credits claimed for the activity. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of recognizing participation. (Direct credit reporting)

American Board of Pediatrics (ABP) Maintenance of Certification Program

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the learner to earn up to 0.5 MOC points per Internet point-of-care activity in the American Board of Pediatrics’ (ABP) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. It is the CME activity provider’s responsibility to submit learner completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABP MOC credit. (Direct credit reporting)

American Board of Surgery (ABS) Continuous Certification Program

Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the learner to earn credit toward the CME requirements of the American Board of Surgery’s Continuous Certification program. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit learner completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABS credit. (Direct credit reporting)

National Board of Physicians and Surgeons (NBPAS) Certification Program

Credits earned from use of UpToDate may fulfill CME and certification requirements for the NBPAS.

AOA Osteopathic Continuous Certification (OCC)

The American Osteopathic Association (AOA) recognizes credit earned from UpToDate as AOA Category 2 credit, which can be used to fulfill licensing and certification requirements. AAccess information about AOA OCC requirements.

American Board of Medical Specialties Continuing Certification Directory

Through the American Board of Medical Specialties (“ABMS”) ongoing commitment to increase access to practice relevant Continuing Certification Activities through the ABMS Continuing Certification Directory, UpToDate has met the requirements as a Lifelong Learning CME Activity (apply toward general CME requirement) for the following ABMS Member Boards:

ABMS Lifelong Learning CME Activity

  • American Board of Allergy and Immunology
  • American Board of Anesthesiology
  • American Board of Colon and Rectal Surgery
  • American Board of Family Medicine
  • American Board of Nuclear Medicine
  • American Board of Ophthalmology
  • American Board of Pathology
  • American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
  • American Board of Preventive Medicine
  • American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
  • American Board of Radiology
  • American Board of Thoracic Surgery
  • American Board of Urology
ABMS Continuing Certification Directory logo

Physician Assistants may earn credit from use of UpToDate to fulfill licensing and certification requirements. Learn more


The National Commission of Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) accepts credit from organizations accredited by ACCME such as UpToDate.

Time spent reading UpToDate topics can be used to fulfill requirements for the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board and other nursing certification organizations. Learn more

American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board (AANPCB)

Use of UpToDate is acceptable for renewal of certification with the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board (AANPCB).

UpToDate meets the Pharmacology requirement for renewal of NP certification with the AANPCB. UpToDate doesn't explicitly mark or separate specific pharmacology topics or credits on Continuing Education (CE) certificates; therefore, candidates should submit the UpToDate activity log alongside their awarded certificates. The activity log (Tracker) includes your clinical search, title(s) of topic(s) reviewed, contact hours earned, and date of activity. The AANPCB encourages candidates to review their UpToDate activity log and conduct a self-assessment to determine the alignment of the UpToDate content with the pharmacology component. NPs have the option to claim UpToDate hours towards the pharmacology requirement, particularly if the content pertains to topics like current clinical application of pharmacology/pharmacokinetics, techniques of safe drug prescribing information, and drug-specific information/therapy for treatment of common acute and chronic diseases across a patient's lifespan. Please contact the AANPCB for more information.

UpToDate is accredited by the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) as an approved provider of nurse practitioner continuing education. For each hour of participation with the UpToDate program, NPs can claim 1.0 contact hour. UpToDate automatically tracks the time you spend using the service.

American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC)

Use of UpToDate is acceptable to the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) for certification renewal requirements. In addition, the ANCC has indicated that UpToDate meets the Pharmacology requirement for renewal of NP certification. However, it is up to the individual user to ensure that the content meets their needs and fits the requirements for this category. Please contact the ANCC for more information.

State Boards of Nursing

Many states may accept the use of UpToDate to fulfill nursing licensing requirements – an added benefit for using this valuable resource. Read more about how UpToDate can help meet nursing continuing education requirements: Nursing CE Requirements and Use of UpToDate Overview.

Please note: Nurses are responsible for confirming with their state nursing board that UpToDate may be accepted to fulfill their CE requirements. Nursing Licensing Boards accept only those CE activities which meet their requirements. UpToDate cannot determine if credits earned using UpToDate are relevant to each licensee, therefore UpToDate cannot guarantee acceptance of all credits for all licensees.

Back To Top