| (a) Each person licensed to practice podiatric medicine
in the State of Texas is required to have 50 hours of continuing medical
education (CME) every two years for the renewal of the license to
practice podiatric medicine. One hour of training is equal to one
hour of CME.
(b) Two hours of the required 50 hours of department
approved CME shall be a course, class, seminar, or workshop in: Ethics
in the Delivery of Health Care Services and/or Rules and Regulations
pertaining to Podiatric Medicine in Texas. Topics on Human Trafficking
Prevention, Healthcare Fraud, Professional Boundaries, Practice Risk
Management or Podiatric Medicine related Ethics or Jurisprudence courses,
Abuse and Misuse of Controlled Substances, Opioid Prescription Practices,
and/or Pharmacology, including those sponsored by an entity approved
by CPME, APMA, APMA affiliated organizations, AMA, AMA affiliated
organizations, or governmental entities, or the entities described
in subsections (e) and (f) are acceptable.
(c) Each person initially licensed to practice podiatric
medicine in the State of Texas is required to complete two hours of
continuing medical education related to approved procedures of prescribing
and monitoring controlled substances prior to the first anniversary
of date the license was originally issued.
(d) For each person licensed to practice podiatric
medicine in the State of Texas whose practice includes prescription
or dispensation of opioids shall annually attend at least one hour
of continuing medical education covering best practices, alternative
treatment options, and multi-modal approaches to pain management that
may include physical therapy, psychotherapy, and other treatments.
(e) A licensee shall receive credit for each hour of
podiatric medical meetings and training sponsored by APMA, APMA affiliated
organizations, TPMA, state, county or regional podiatric medical association
podiatric medical meetings, university sponsored podiatric medical
meetings, hospital podiatric medical meetings or hospital podiatric
medical grand rounds, medical meetings sponsored by the Foot &
Ankle Society or the orthopedic community relating to foot care, and
others at the discretion of the Board. A practitioner may receive
credit for giving a lecture, equal to the credit that a podiatrist
attending the lecture obtains.
(f) A licensee shall receive credit for each hour of
training for non-podiatric medical sponsored meetings that are relative
to podiatric medicine and department approved. The department may
assign credit for hospital grand rounds, hospital CME programs, corporate
sponsored meetings, and meetings sponsored by the American Medical
Association, the orthopedic community, the American Diabetes Association,
the Nursing Association, the Physical Therapy Association, and others
if approved.
(g) It shall be the responsibility of the licensee
to ensure that all CME hours being claimed meet the standards for
CME as set by the commission. Practice management, home study and
self-study programs will be accepted for CME credit hours only if
the provider is approved by the Council on Podiatric Medical Education.
The licensee may obtain up to, but not exceed twenty (20) hours of
the aforementioned hours per biennium.
(h) Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) certification
is eligible for up to three (3) hours of CME credit and Advanced Cardiac
Life Support (ACLS) certification for up to six (6) hours of CME credit.
Practitioners may only receive credit for one, not both. No on-line
CPR certification will be accepted for CME credit.
(i) If a practitioner has an article published in a
peer review journal, the practitioner may receive one (1) hour of
CME credit for the article, with credit for the article being provided
only once, regardless of the number of times or the number of journals
in which the article is published.
(j) With the exception of the allowed hours carried
forward, the required 50 hours of continuing medical education must
be obtained in a 24-month period immediately preceding the date in
which the license is to be renewed. The 24-month period will begin
on the first full day of the month after the practitioner's date of
renewal and end two years later. A licensee who completes more than
the required 50 hours during the preceding CME period may carry forward
a maximum of ten (10) hours for the next renewal CME period.
(k) The department shall employ an audit system for
continuing education reporting. The license holder shall be responsible
for maintaining a record of his or her continuing education experiences.
The certificates or other documentation verifying earning of continuing
education hours are not to be forwarded to the department at the time
of renewal unless the license holder has been selected for audit.
(l) The audit process shall be as follows:
(1) The department shall select for audit a random
sample of license holders to ensure compliance with CME hours.
(2) If selected for an audit, the license holder shall
submit copies of certificates, transcripts or other documentation
satisfactory to the department, verifying the license holder's attendance,
participation and completion of the continuing education.
(3) Failure to timely furnish this information within
thirty (30) calendar days or providing false information during the
audit process or the renewal process are grounds for disciplinary
action against the license holder.
(4) If selected for continuing education audit during
the renewal period, the license holder may renew and pay renewal fees.
(m) Licensees that are deficient in CME hours must
complete all deficient CME hours and current biennium CME requirement
in order to maintain licensure.
(n) Continuing education obtained as a part of a disciplinary
action is not acceptable credit towards the total of fifty (50) hours
required every two years.
(o) The 85th Texas Legislature enacted changes to Chapter
202, Occupations Code, providing the commission with authority to
establish a one or two-year license term for licensees. See H.B. 3078,
85th Legislature, Regular Session (2017). The purpose of this transition
rule is to provide guidance on how continuing medical education will
be assessed when transitioning from a one to two-year license term.
This rule applies only to licensees renewing on or after September
1, 2019. Beginning September 1, 2019, the department shall stagger
the continuing medical education biennium of licenses as follows.
Licensees renewing in an odd numbered year are to obtain 50 hours
of CME for a 24-month period between 2019 and 2021; and for every
2-years thereafter in between renewal dates. Licensees renewing in
an even numbered year are to obtain 50 hours of CME for a 24-month
period between 2020 and 2022; and for every 2-years thereafter in
between renewal dates. This rule expires on August 31, 2022.
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