Getting Started: Planning for Commendation
You’ve decided you want to apply for Accreditation with Commendation. What’s your next step? Providers who have earned Accreditation with Commendation attribute their success to proactive planning. When you plan your CME activities with Commendation in mind, you’ll find it’s easier to achieve your goal. To help you get started, Mindi Daiga, Vice President of Accreditation at the Pri-Med Institute, shares advice drawn from her own professional experience.
NEWS
ACCME Approves New Policy Prohibiting Gift Cards Associated with Accredited CE
In December 2025, the ACCME issued a Call for Comment on a Policy Prohibiting Gift Cards or Personal Remuneration Associated with the Purchase of Accredited CME. We received 31 responses. Thank you to all who took the time to share their feedback.
The ACCME Board of Directors in March 2026 approved and adopted the Policy Prohibiting Gift Cards or Personal Remuneration Associated with the Purchase of Accredited CME. Effective immediately, the policy prohibits an accredited provider, or any of its agents, from offering, providing, or facilitating a gift card, cash equivalent, or other form of personal remuneration to any individual learner or group of learners as part of, or in association with, the purchase or registration for an accredited CME activity—regardless of who pays the registration fee, including self-payment and circumstances in which an employer, institution, or other entity pays for or reimburses participation. Additional guidance is provided on the policy page to support consistent application of the policy.
The policy is under consideration by other accrediting bodies, including Joint Accreditation.
Update on American Board of Surgery Practice Areas
A modification was recently made to the name of an important activity practice area utilized by the American Board of Surgery (ABS). Specifically, “Bariatric Surgery” has been updated to “Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery,” and this change is now live in PARS and CME Passport.
Surgeons who hold an ABS Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery (MSB) Focused Practice Designation are required to complete 40 bariatric CME credits over five years. To ensure that MBS-related CME activities can be counted toward this ABS requirement, accredited providers should select “Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery” when registering activities going forward.
ABA Launches High Priority Topics Reports for Subspecialities
As part of the American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA) Strategic Plan, the ABA has launched its new High Priority Topics Reports for Subspecialties, outlining the key areas that most consistently challenge board-certified anesthesiologists in subspecialty-specific continuing certification. Circulating these insights among societies and CME partners directly connects assessment results with lifelong learning, bolstering the highest standard of expertise across subspecialties. To develop the reports, the ABA assessments team analyzed aggregate 2025 MOCA Minute performance data and pinpointed the top 10 topics that posed the greatest level of difficulty within each subspecialty. Following psychometric review, volunteer subspecialty committees reviewed and validated the findings.
Access the 2025 reports below to inform your educational efforts:
These reports complement ABA’s MOCA Minute High Priority Topics Report published on a biannual basis, which informs CME more broadly with insights from all board-certified anesthesiologists’ continuing certification performance.
EDUCATION & RESOURCES
Coffee with Graham Podcast on Nutrition and Preventive Medicine
Now available: “Committed to Nutrition and Preventive Medicine,” the first episode in the Committed To series of Coffee with Graham.
Join host Graham McMahon, president and CEO of ACCME, as he speaks with registered dietitian Colleen Tewksbury, PhD, MPH, RD, CSOWM, LDN, FAND, incoming Chair of the Commission on Dietetic Registration and Assistant Professor in Nutrition Science at University of Pennsylvania, and pediatrician Christopher Duggan, MD, MPH, Editor in Chief, The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, and Professor of Nutrition, Harvard University. They discuss evidence-based nutrition care, communicating without stigma, and practical ways interprofessional teams can help patients make sustainable changes amid widespread misinformation.
Listen now and share with colleagues who are committed to strengthening nutrition and prevention in everyday practice.
ACCME Certificate Programs: Summer 2026 Cohort Registration Now Open!
Registration for the Summer 2026 cohort of ACCME’s Certificate Programs is open! Registration is open through Friday, May 29, so don’t miss your chance to elevate your expertise, whether in PARS/JA-PARS data management or the Standards for Integrity and Independence in Accredited CE. The programs begin Monday, June 8, promising engaging, real-world learning designed to support your continued growth in accredited continuing education.
ACCME 2026 Accreditation Workshop Registration is Open
Registration is open for the 2026 ACCME Accreditation Workshop! Whether you’re new to accredited CE or looking to strengthen your understanding of ACCME’s requirements, this in-person workshop is your opportunity to connect with colleagues, explore key strategies, and access valuable tools to elevate your program. Make the most of your experience by attending the optional Newcomers’ Orientation on Monday, August 24.
REMINDERS
Applications for ABMS 2026–2027 Visiting Scholars Programs Available
The American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS) is accepting applications for the 2026-2027 ABMS Visiting Scholars Program™. This one-year, part-time program supports the research of early-career physicians and research professionals, while facilitating leadership development through engagement with ABMS and the broader certification community.
Visiting Scholars will receive a $15,000 grant to support the direct costs of research and travel expenses associated with participation in the program, which will begin in September 2026. Applications must be received by 11:59 pm CT on June 22, 2026. Questions? Contact VisitingScholars@abms.org.
RFA Process Open for REMS-Compliant Accredited CE
The Mycophenolate Applicants (Mycophenolate REMS Group, MRG) Continuing Education (CE) Subteam has announced that the 2026 CE Request for Application (RFA) for REMS-compliant accredited CE has been published on the MRG website. The 2026 CE Grant Cycle is open to all CE Providers interested in receiving funding for REMS-compliant accredited CE programs. REMS-compliant educational CE activities must cover all portions of the “FDA’s Mycophenolate REMS Education Blueprint for Healthcare Providers who Prescribe” (FDA Blueprint).
Grant applications must be submitted via the Grant Management System (GMS) no later than 11:59 pm ET on Friday, June 5, 2026. Notification of grant awards is planned for July 2026.
Thank You for Completing Your Annual Reports!
The ACCME extends our thanks to accredited providers for completing your annual data requirements. In the coming weeks we will be aggregating the annual data submissions to produce the annual ACCME Data Report, a valuable tool for accredited providers to understand the current CE environment and the nature of the education being provided, benchmark their performance, and demonstrate the impact of their work. Watch for the full report this summer!
