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Louisiana CME and nursing CE requirements
Continuing education and license renewal rules for physicians, advanced practice clinicians and nurses licensed in Louisiana, as recorded by ClinLicense for planning.
Planning aid only. ClinLicense is not legal or compliance advice. Boards change rules between cycles, so confirm every requirement with the board before you rely on it.
- Licensing board
- Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners
- License renewal
- Every 1 year
MD CME requirements
Reviewed 2026-10-31 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-10-31. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Some details below are marked for confirmation, so treat those as unverified until the board confirms them. Always confirm with the board before you rely on it.
Board-approved course required At least one topic must come from a course the board has approved, and a general CME course may not count. Check the board’s approved list before you buy.
- Total hours
- 20 hours every year, with at least 20 in Category 1 or the equivalent
- License renewal
- Every 1 year
Required topics
| Topic | Hours | How often | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opioid & controlled-substance prescribing | 1 | Every cycle | DEA registrants Board-approved course required | Controlled-substance prescribing for CDS licensees; hours and frequency uncertain |
Notes. Annual renewal, 20 Category 1 hours per year. Controlled-substance CME rule details uncertain.
DO CME requirements
Not yet verified Not yet verified, confirm with the board. This entry has not been checked against the board’s own published rules.
Board-approved course required At least one topic must come from a course the board has approved, and a general CME course may not count. Check the board’s approved list before you buy.
- Total hours
- 20 hours every year, with at least 20 in Category 1 or the equivalent
- License renewal
- Every 1 year
Required topics
| Topic | Hours | How often | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opioid & controlled-substance prescribing | 1 | Every cycle | DEA registrants Board-approved course required | Controlled-substance prescribing for CDS licensees; hours and frequency uncertain |
Notes. Copied from the MD block as a planning default; the osteopathic rules were not separately confirmed. Confirm with the board.
NP CME requirements
Reviewed 2026-11-01 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-01. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Always confirm with the board before you rely on it.
- Total hours
- Not recorded every 2 years
- License renewal
- Every 1 year
Required topics
| Topic | Hours | How often | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacology | 6 | Every cycle | Some licensees, see the note | 6 contact hours of pharmacotherapeutics EACH YEAR for APRNs with prescriptive authority (12 per two-year licensure period) |
| Opioid & controlled-substance prescribing | 3 | Every cycle | DEA registrants | One-time 3 hours of CE for prescribers of controlled substances (Act 76 of 2017); required before renewal for APRNs with prescriptive authority and a CDS license |
Notes. RN and APRN licenses renew on a 2-year licensure period. Nationally board-certified APRNs meet the RN CE/practice requirement by holding approved certification; otherwise RN renewal needs 30 board-approved CE hours or 900 practice hours in the 2-year period.
PA CME requirements
Reviewed 2026-11-01 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-01. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Some details below are marked for confirmation, so treat those as unverified until the board confirms them. Always confirm with the board before you rely on it.
- Total hours
- Not recorded, and the renewal cycle is not recorded
- License renewal
- Every 1 year
Required topics
| Topic | Hours | How often | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opioid & controlled-substance prescribing | 3 | Every cycle | DEA registrants | One-time 3-hour CDS CME (prescribing best practices, drug diversion, addiction treatment, chronic pain) for CDS license holders, before first renewal |
Notes. LSBME requires annual CE for all licensees tracked in CE Broker and a Laws and Rules course at first renewal; the annual PA hour count is on a separate board PDF that is not confirmed here. Confirm with the board.
CRNA CME requirements
Reviewed 2026-11-01 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-01. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Some details below are marked for confirmation, so treat those as unverified until the board confirms them. Always confirm with the board before you rely on it.
- Total hours
- Not recorded every 2 years
- License renewal
- Every 1 year
Required topics
No mandated topics are recorded for this profession in this state. That is not the same as the board having none, so confirm with the board.
Notes. LSBN brochure covers RN and APRN renewal on a 2-year period; certified APRNs meet RN renewal by holding approved certification. The pharmacotherapeutics rule applies to APRNs with prescriptive authority. CRNA-specific provisions were not found in the documents read; Confirm with the board.
Louisiana nursing CE requirements
Nursing boards usually count continuing education in contact hours rather than CME credits, and the nursing license renews on its own schedule, which may differ from the medical board dates above. Nurse practitioners and nurse anesthetists have their own sections above.
Nurse Licensure Compact Louisiana has implemented the Nurse Licensure Compact. A registered or practical nurse whose primary state of residence is Louisiana can hold a multistate license issued by Louisiana, which carries the privilege to practice in the other compact states, and a nurse with a multistate license from another compact state can practice in Louisiana under that privilege. Renewal and CE for a multistate license follow the rules of the home state that issued it. The compact covers RN and LPN/LVN licenses only, and advanced practice authority is still granted state by state. This compact list was last reviewed on November 3, 2026. Read the compact guide for RNs and LPNs.
Registered nurses (RN)
Reviewed 2026-11-03 This entry was last reviewed on 2026-11-03 against the source linked below. That date records our own review and is not a board approval. Some details are marked for confirmation, so treat those as unverified until the board confirms them.
- Continuing education
- 30 contact hours every 2 years
- Other ways to meet it
- The board's CE brochure (LAC 46:XLVII.3333 and 3335) requires RNs to complete, in the 2-year licensure period, either 30 board-approved CE contact hours or 900 practice hours verified by the employer. RNs are exempt in the calendar year of initial Louisiana licensure or if they hold current active certification in a nursing specialty the board recognizes, and the board audits after renewal.
- Nursing license renewal
- Every 2 years, based on a fixed calendar date (01-31)
- Board
- Louisiana State Board of Nursing
- Source
- The board page this entry was checked against
No mandated topics are recorded for this license. That is not the same as the board having none, so confirm with the board.
Notes. The board's CE brochure (LAC 46:XLVII.3333 and 3335) requires RNs to complete, in the 2-year licensure period, either 30 board-approved CE contact hours or 900 practice hours verified by the employer. RNs are exempt in the calendar year of initial Louisiana licensure or if they hold current active certification in a nursing specialty the board recognizes, and the board audits after renewal. The brochure says licenses expire January 31 if not renewed, with the renewal season in the fall, so the exact expiry date should be confirmed. The brochure sets no mandatory CE topics for RNs.
Licensed practical and vocational nurses (LPN/LVN)
Not yet verified This nursing entry has not been checked against the board’s own published rules, so confirm it with the board before you rely on it.
- Continuing education
- The board requires no continuing education for this license.
- Nursing license renewal
- Every 1 year
- Board
- Louisiana State Board of Practical Nurse Examiners
- Source
- The board page this entry was checked against
Notes. The Louisiana State Board of Practical Nurse Examiners licenses LPNs separately; its renewal page describes annual renewal from November 1 to January 31 and mentions no continuing-education requirement, and secondary summaries agree that none exists. The board's administrative code text is not confirmed here, so hours 0 is an inference from the silence of the board's pages.
Certified nurse-midwives (CNM)
Not yet verified This nursing entry has not been checked against the board’s own published rules, so confirm it with the board before you rely on it.
- Continuing education
- Not recorded, on a cycle of 2 years, so confirm the figure with the board.
- Other ways to meet it
- LSBN brochure: RNs who hold national APRN certification meet the RN CE or practice requirement through that certification, and each year an APRN with prescriptive authority needs 6 contact hours of pharmacotherapeutics in the advanced role and population focus (LAC 46:XLVII.4513), which is 12 per 2-year period. The brochure covers APRNs as a group and does not name CNMs or CNSs, so total CE for a certified APRN is left null.
- Nursing license renewal
- Every 2 years, based on a fixed calendar date (01-31)
- Board
- Louisiana State Board of Nursing
- Source
- The board page this entry was checked against
Required topics
| Topic | Contact hours | How often | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacology | 12 | Every cycle | Some licensees, see the note | 6 contact hours of pharmacotherapeutics each year (12 per 2-year period) for APRNs with prescriptive authority |
| Opioid & controlled-substance prescribing | 3 | Once | DEA registrants | One-time 3 hours of board-approved CE on controlled-substance prescribing (Act 76 of 2017), counted within the annual hours; APRNs with controlled-substance authority |
Notes. LSBN brochure: RNs who hold national APRN certification meet the RN CE or practice requirement through that certification, and each year an APRN with prescriptive authority needs 6 contact hours of pharmacotherapeutics in the advanced role and population focus (LAC 46:XLVII.4513), which is 12 per 2-year period. A one-time 3-hour controlled-substance prescribing course also applies to APRNs with controlled-substance authority. The brochure covers APRNs as a group and does not name CNMs or CNSs, so total CE for a certified APRN is left null.
Clinical nurse specialists (CNS)
Not yet verified This nursing entry has not been checked against the board’s own published rules, so confirm it with the board before you rely on it.
- Continuing education
- Not recorded, on a cycle of 2 years, so confirm the figure with the board.
- Other ways to meet it
- LSBN brochure: RNs who hold national APRN certification meet the RN CE or practice requirement through that certification, and each year an APRN with prescriptive authority needs 6 contact hours of pharmacotherapeutics in the advanced role and population focus (LAC 46:XLVII.4513), which is 12 per 2-year period. The brochure covers APRNs as a group and does not name CNMs or CNSs, so total CE for a certified APRN is left null.
- Nursing license renewal
- Every 2 years, based on a fixed calendar date (01-31)
- Board
- Louisiana State Board of Nursing
- Source
- The board page this entry was checked against
Required topics
| Topic | Contact hours | How often | Applies to | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pharmacology | 12 | Every cycle | Some licensees, see the note | 6 contact hours of pharmacotherapeutics each year (12 per 2-year period) for APRNs with prescriptive authority |
| Opioid & controlled-substance prescribing | 3 | Once | DEA registrants | One-time 3 hours of board-approved CE on controlled-substance prescribing (Act 76 of 2017), counted within the annual hours; APRNs with controlled-substance authority |
Notes. LSBN brochure: RNs who hold national APRN certification meet the RN CE or practice requirement through that certification, and each year an APRN with prescriptive authority needs 6 contact hours of pharmacotherapeutics in the advanced role and population focus (LAC 46:XLVII.4513), which is 12 per 2-year period. A one-time 3-hour controlled-substance prescribing course also applies to APRNs with controlled-substance authority. The brochure covers APRNs as a group and does not name CNMs or CNSs, so total CE for a certified APRN is left null.
See nursing CE requirements by state to compare Louisiana with other states.
Plan this renewal
Use the free opioid CME planner to see the controlled-substance rules for Louisiana next to other states, or the license cost calculator to estimate fees. Read how multi-state CME works if you hold more than one license.
Nurse practitioners, physician assistants, nurse anesthetists and anesthesiologist assistants usually also maintain national certification, which has its own cycle. The recertification basics guide explains how that fits alongside state rules. Nurses who hold licenses in more than one state can read the Nurse Licensure Compact for RNs and LPNs.
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