The Illinois State Medical Society (ISMS) has announced changes to the requirements for continuing medical education (CME) for physicians in Illinois. Legislation initiated by ISMS and signed into law in 2023 will allow doctors more flexibility in meeting state-mandated CME obligations.
Under the new law, physicians who hold an Illinois controlled substance license now have six years, instead of three, to complete “opioid safety training.” The duration of this training has also been reduced from three hours to one hour. Similarly, doctors are now required to complete training on “cultural competency” and “recognizing symptoms of dementia” every six years rather than every three years. The latter applies if they treat adult patients.
If any additional CME mandates are introduced in the future, the time frame for completion in these categories will be extended from every six years to every nine years.
According to ISMS, these adjustments are intended to let doctors focus their continuing education on topics that are most relevant to their specialty areas.
ISMS provides all required CME courses free of charge for its members.
However, physicians must still complete “implicit bias training” and “sexual harassment prevention training” every three years.
For further questions, ISMS encourages physicians to contact its Health Policy Research and Advocacy team by email.
