Pennsylvania Physician Assistant license renewal and CE requirements

Summary

Pennsylvania physician assistants must complete 100 CME credits of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Pennsylvania State Board of Medicine. A physician assistant licensed by the State Board of Medicine registers biennially under the procedure in 49 Pa. Code 16.15, and registration for a biennium expires December 31 of every even numbered year. The application for biennial registration is filed on board forms with the fee before the previous registration period expires. Renewal is completed through the PALS portal. Pennsylvania also mandates specific subjects. Child abuse recognition and reporting: 2 CME credits every renewal cycle. Pain management, the identification of addiction, or the practices of prescribing or dispensing opioids: 2 CME credits every renewal cycle (physician assistants who hold prescriptive authority tied to a DEA registration).

Pennsylvania Physician Assistant renewal and continuing education rules

"Not stated" means the board's pages and rules we read do not address it. We do not fill in typical values.

Pennsylvania does not set its own hour total for physician assistants. 49 Pa. Code 18.145 conditions renewal on maintaining current NCCPA certification and completing the continuing medical education required by the NCCPA, so the operative number is the NCCPA's: 100 continuing medical education credits per two year cycle, with the recertification examination by the end of the tenth year of the certification maintenance cycle. The 100 recorded here is that NCCPA figure, not a Pennsylvania figure. Pennsylvania then adds two of its own mandated subjects inside that education: at least 2 hours of approved training in child abuse recognition and reporting under 49 Pa. Code 16.108(b), and, for a physician assistant with authority tied to a DEA registration, at least 2 hours in pain management, the identification of addiction or the practices of prescribing or dispensing opioids. For contrast, a Pennsylvania medical doctor owes 100 credit hours per biennium set by the board itself, with 12 hours in patient safety or risk management; the physician assistant total is not inherited from that rule even though the number coincides.

Required CE topics for Pennsylvania physician assistants

State-specific subject mandates. Where a mandate applies only to some licensees, the scope is listed.

Documentation and audit

Common questions

How many CE hours does a Pennsylvania PA need to renew?

Pennsylvania physician assistants must complete 100 CME credits of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Pennsylvania State Board of Medicine. Pennsylvania does not set its own hour total for physician assistants. 49 Pa. Code 18.145 conditions renewal on maintaining current NCCPA certification and completing the continuing medical education required by the NCCPA, so the operative number is the NCCPA's: 100 continuing medical education credits per two year cycle, with the recertification examination by the end of the tenth year of the certification maintenance cycle. The 100 recorded here is that NCCPA figure, not a Pennsylvania figure. Pennsylvania then adds two of its own mandated subjects inside that education: at least 2 hours of approved training in child abuse recognition and reporting under 49 Pa. Code 16.108(b), and, for a physician assistant with authority tied to a DEA registration, at least 2 hours in pain management, the identification of addiction or the practices of prescribing or dispensing opioids. For contrast, a Pennsylvania medical doctor owes 100 credit hours per biennium set by the board itself, with 12 hours in patient safety or risk management; the physician assistant total is not inherited from that rule even though the number coincides.

How often does a Pennsylvania PA license need to be renewed?

Physician Assistant licenses in Pennsylvania renew every two years. A physician assistant licensed by the State Board of Medicine registers biennially under the procedure in 49 Pa. Code 16.15, and registration for a biennium expires December 31 of every even numbered year. The application for biennial registration is filed on board forms with the fee before the previous registration period expires. Renewal is completed through the PALS portal.

What specific CE topics are required for Pennsylvania physician assistants?

Child abuse recognition and reporting: 2 CME credits every renewal cycle. Pain management, the identification of addiction, or the practices of prescribing or dispensing opioids: 2 CME credits every renewal cycle (physician assistants who hold prescriptive authority tied to a DEA registration). Citations: child abuse recognition and reporting (49 Pa. Code 18.145; 49 Pa. Code 16.108(b)) and pain management, the identification of addiction, or the practices of prescribing or dispensing opioids (49 Pa. Code 18.145).

Do Pennsylvania physician assistants have to submit CE certificates at renewal?

Proof of completion must be submitted with the renewal. Continuing medical education as required by the NCCPA for maintaining certification, plus board approved child abuse recognition and reporting training.

Sources

Last verified September 8, 2026. Every value above was read from one of these.

• 49 Pa. Code 18.145, Biennial registration requirements; renewal of physician assistant license (State Board of Medicine)Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 8, 2026
• 49 Pa. Code 16.15, Biennial registration (State Board of Medicine)Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 8, 2026
• 49 Pa. Code Chapter 25 Subchapter C, Physician Assistant Provisions (State Board of Osteopathic Medicine, section list)Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 8, 2026
• Renewal Information, Pennsylvania State Board of MedicineState board page, accessed September 8, 2026
• Maintaining Certification, National Commission on Certification of Physician AssistantsNational association, accessed September 8, 2026

This record covers the State Board of Medicine route only, and says so in the advisory, because Pennsylvania splits physician assistant regulation between the State Board of Medicine (49 Pa. Code Chapter 18 Subchapter D) and the State Board of Osteopathic Medicine (49 Pa. Code Chapter 25 Subchapter C) depending on the supervising physician. The NCCPA certification requirement, the child abuse hours and the pain management or opioid hours were read in the official text of 49 Pa. Code 18.145 on pacodeandbulletin.gov, and the December 31 even year biennial expiration in 49 Pa. Code 16.15, which applies to persons licensed, certified or registered by the board with a short list of exceptions that does not include physician assistants (it excludes physician assistant supervisors). The 100 credit figure is the NCCPA's own, read on the NCCPA site, because Pennsylvania states its requirement by reference to that certification rather than by naming a number. The osteopathic board's section list was read and confirms the parallel structure at 49 Pa. Code 25.163 and 25.161(c)(6), but the osteopathic biennial registration date was not read and is not stated here. Carryover, audit practice and record retention are not addressed in the sections read.