Residents checking off tasks on their to-do list as they prepare to enter practice can use an exclusive AMA Ed Hub™ resource to complete training required by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) on treating and managing patients with opioid- or other substance-use disorders.
If you have accepted a permanent position or are in the run-up to beginning practice, it’s time to apply for individual DEA registration, a process that includes meeting a one-time, eight-hour training requirement that took effect in 2023 as part of the Medication Access and Training Expansion (MATE) Act. Physicians are required to satisfy the training requirement before their next scheduled DEA registration submission—regardless of whether it is an initial or a renewal registration.
Additionally, many states require physicians and other opioid prescribers to obtain training of between one to three hours each renewal cycle for their licensure every other year.
The AMA Ed Hub is an online learning platform that brings together high-quality CME, maintenance of certification and educational content from trusted sources, all in one place—with activities relevant to you, automated credit tracking and reporting for some states and specialty boards. The courses feature education from the AMA and other trusted sources, including the American Society of Addiction Medicine.
The AMA GME Competency Education Program includes the “MATE Act: DEA Training Requirements” curriculum to help resident and fellow physicians comply with the DEA regulations.
“The opportunity to make sure that you have up-to-date education that's going to be relevant for your practice is really what we want to provide in those resources for physicians,” said Jodi Abbott, MD, MHCM, the AMA’s medical director of education center curriculum and outreach. “At every step of your training and whatever setting you're in, we have education that is going to be great for you, that you'll get credit for and that you can keep in one unified transcript.”
Carefully curated resources
AMA members have access to mini-CME tracks designed to help them meet DEA training requirements. Get your exclusive, AMA members-only certificate for opioid and substance-use disorder CME. With the training, physicians can:
- Satisfy the DEA training requirement and earn CME credit toward their state licensure or organizational requirements.
- Save time and take one of four tracks carefully curated with education designed to address the needs of specific medical practice settings and specialties.
- Learn at their own pace and get an AMA members-only certificate upon completion of each track.
The listed CME activities can be taken in any combination to fulfill the DEA training requirement. They cover areas such as:
- Safe opioid prescribing and management.
- Addiction treatment.
- Managing addiction in special populations.
- Prevention and treatment of opioid overdoses.
- Addiction beyond opioids.
Residency or fellowship program administrators also can assign the courses to their learners, resting assured they have the education to fulfill the requirement. Additionally, compliance is easy to track. Request a demo.
Training that fits your needs, on your schedule
Once physicians have completed their CME, they can check a box on their DEA registration application or renewal form indicating they have satisfied the training requirement. The training does not have to happen in one session, and past trainings on the treatment and management of patients with opioid or other substance-use disorders can be used to meet the DEA requirement.
“There are people who need narcotics, and we want you to prescribe them in the most effective and safest way, as well as provide patients with appropriate pain care,” Dr. Abbott said. “We really want to be able to help physicians feel confident that they can address the needs of the patient that's sitting in front of them.”
Learn more about AMA CME accreditation and how to comply with the MATE Act and DEA MATE requirements.
