About NBPAS

The National Board of Physicians and Surgeons

The National Board of Physicians and Surgeons (NBPAS) was founded in 2014 to provide an alternative pathway for the maintenance phase of certification through rigorous, practice-specific continuing medical education (CME). NBPAS also requires initial ABMS or AOA board certification and is the only organization that board certifies physicians in all ABMS and AOA medical specialties and subspecialties.

NBPAS is a 501c(3), not-for-profit, organization with unpaid volunteer physician leadership. NPBAS has 8900 NBPAS board certified physicians with 138 hospitals and health systems accepting NBPAS Board certification.

NBPAS Certification Criteria:

  • Must be an MD or DO.
  • Initial board certification from ABMS or AOA required.
  • Physicians must have an active and unrestricted license.
  • Physicians must complete 50 hours of ACCME accredited CME every 24 months (100 hours if ABMS/AOA cert has lapsed)
  • Renewal of certification is required every 2 years.

**NBPAS certifies only ABMS and AOA recognized specialties and subspecialties.

NBPAS Facts:

  • 8900 NBPAS Diplomates (as of March 2021)
  • 138 Accepting Hospitals (as of March 2021)
  • 20 Volunteer Physician Board members

Why maintain my board certification with NBPAS?

  • NBPAS was started after 20,000+ physicians signed a petition to provide an alternative pathway to the mandated Maintenance of Certification (MOC/OCC) programs of ABMS and AOA.
  • Published studies have found no association between MOC/OCC and improved patient outcomes. NBPAS did a thorough review of these studies, you can find them here.
  • NBPAS diplomates believe in life-long learning and providing the best quality care to their patients.
  • NBPAS board certification allows physicians to study practice-specific, accredited CME and maintain the highest possible peer-established standards in each specialty and subspecialty. Continuing certification through NBPAS allows physicians to prioritize the most important people in health care–their patients.

Is NBPAS an accepted board?

  • NBPAS meets the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and Utilization Review Accreditation Commission (URAC) standards for verifying education and training. This verification is required by credentialers at hospitals, health systems and health insurance companies.

Other Important Facts

  • Thirteen states have passed legislation prohibiting MOC/OCC as a requirement for medical licensing, hospital privileges and payor reimbursement. View here
  • The anti-competitive nature of the ABMS MOC product caught the attention of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Antitrust Division. On September 10, 2018, the DOJ published guidance that strongly encouraged competition in physician certification. Read More
  • The American Medical Association (AMA) issued a resolution stating that MOC/OCC should not be a mandated requirement for licensure, credentialing, payment, network participation or employment. Read More
  • The ABMS released a Vision Commission report (2019) on MOC concluding that “ABMS must encourage hospitals, health systems, payers and other health care organizations to not deny credentialing or privileging to a physician solely on the basis of certification.”

To learn more please contact Executive Director Katie Collins at kcollins@nbpas.org.