Education Requirements and Training Opportunities for Appropriate Prescribing of Controlled Medications
The online resources listed below offer free and/or paid educational activities on the appropriate prescribing of controlled substance medications which meet both the California Medical Board and the DEA Registration training requirements.
Provider Clinical Support System (PCSS)
PCSS is a program funded by the SAHMSA focused on the prevention and treatment of opioid use disorders (OUD), other substance use disorders, and the appropriate treatment of chronic pain. http://education.sudtraining.org/Public/Catalog/Home.aspx?tab=2 .
Safer/Competent Opioid Prescribing Education (SCOPE) of Pain
SCOPE of Pain offers a wider series of CME training modules designed to promote safe and effective acute and chronic pain management. SCOPE of Pain: Safer and Competent Opioid Prescribing Core Curriculum and supplemental trainings can be used to count toward the DEA licensure 8-hour training requirement as it aligns with SAMHSA’s content recommendations required by the 2022 MATE Act. http://www.scopeofpain.org/core-curriculum/online-training.
American Medical Association Education Hub
The American Medical Association offers free (as well as paid) CME options regarding opioids, pain management and safe opioid prescribing. http://edhub.ama-assn.org/course/277 and http://edhub.ama-assn.org/course/302.
American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM)
ASAM offers multiple CME opportunities, including workshops, review courses and recommended trainings to meet DEA requirement as part of MATE Act. http://elearning.asam.org/addiction-education-for-prescribers.
California Society of Addiction Medicine (CSAM)
CSAM also has multiple educational options for CME credit. http://cme.csam-asam.org.
American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP)
Visit http://aanp.inreachce.com and select the filter for courses that meet DEA requirements.
American Association of Physician Associates (AAPA)
http://cme.aapa.org/local/catalog/view/product.php?productid=690
New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM)
Free 10 hour NEJM Knowledge+ Pain Management and Opioids CME/CE course aligns with SAMHSA’s content recommendations required by the 2022 Medication Access and Training Expansion (MATE) Act and enhances knowledge about opioids, to help providers feel more confident managing pain appropriately. https://knowledgeplus.nejm.org/cme-moc/pain-management-and-opioids-cme/
Summary of the California Medical Board and the DEA Registration training requirements
Medical Board of California Continuing Medical Education (CME) Requirements
The Medical Board of California requires that physicians and surgeons complete a 12-hour course on pain management and the treatment of terminally ill patients within four years of initial licensure. Physician specialists in pathology and/or radiology are exempt from this training requirement. Physicians licensed ON or AFTER January 1, 2019 need to ensure that the course includes additional content on the risks of addiction associated with the use of Schedule II drugs.
The 12 CME hours in pain management and the treatment of terminally ill and dying patients may be divided in any way that is relevant to the physician’s specialty and practice setting as described by the Medical Board of California. As an additional option, physicians can choose to complete a one-time 12-hour course on the treatment and management of opioid-dependent patients to meet this requirement. All courses must also include the risks of addiction associated with the use of Schedule II drugs. Physicians must complete the mandated hours by his or her second license renewal date after licensure.
According to the California Medical Association, physicians who completed this California Medical Board-required CME will also have met the new Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) training requirements discussed below, as long as their CME was provided by an accredited organization listed in the DEA guidance.
Training Requirements for DEA-Registered Clinicians
With the passage of the Omnibus Bill in December 2022, the Medication Access and Training Expansion (MATE) Act requires all DEA registrants (including physicians, dentists, physician assistants, advanced practice nurses, and clinical pharmacists) to have completed a one-time requirement to obtain training about the management of opioid and/or other substance use disorders that totals not fewer than 8 hours. DEA registrants renewing their DEA registration on or after June 27, 2023 will have to attest to their compliance with this training requirement. See below for a list of available training opportunities for DEA registrants to obtain this training and see the federal letter to DEA registrants which describe the specific training requirements for clinicians renewing their DEA registration.
The following DEA registrants are deemed by the DEA to have already fulfilled this training requirement:
- All DEA registrants who graduated in good standing from a medical (allopathic or osteopathic), dental, physician assistant, or advanced practice nursing school in the United States within five years of June 27, 2023 and who have already completed a comprehensive curriculum that included at least eight hours of applicable training.
- Physicians with ABMS, ABAM, or AOA board certification in addition medicine or addiction psychiatry
- DEA registrants who previously completed eight or more hours of the DATA-2000 waiver training to prescribe buprenorphine for opioid use disorder.
This list was created on 8/26/24. If there are errors please email: dphcme@ph.lacounty.gov