CME requirements, reporting and reelection for AAFP membership

calendar image

To maintain membership, you must meet the AAFP’s continuing medical education requirements.

What you need to know for your membership reelection cycle

You work hard to maintain and improve your medical knowledge with Continuing Medical Education credits (CME). Our role is to support you in your learning journey, which includes reporting your CME every three years to maintain active membership in the AAFP.

If you fall into a reelection year, CME is due each year on Dec. 31.

What is reelection?

To meet your AAFP active membership requirements, you need to complete and report 150 CME credits every three calendar years. This three-year period is referred to as a reelection cycle. Of those 150 credits, at least 75 must be AAFP prescribed credits.

If you're a member in your first reelection cycle, the cycle is four years: the year you became an Active member and the next three full calendar years.

To be eligible for AAFP membership, you must earn and report the required CME credits within your specific reelection cycle. Once you've met the CME requirement and paid your dues, you're “reelected” to AAFP membership. If your reelection requirements are not met, your membership will be canceled.

CME must be reported in the year it is earned. Members up for reelection in 2025 will need to report CME by Dec. 31.

The AAFP’s CME Reporter is an easy way to report your CME as you go. You get transcript updates, record access including letters of participation and CME progress tracking.

How reelection works for different member types

Existing active members

You must complete a reelection cycle every three years to maintain your membership. The cycle consists of earning and reporting at least 150 credits of approved CME, including a minimum of 75 prescribed credits (some chapters require additional specific credits).

Your reelection cycle begins on Jan. 1 of the year following the activation of your membership and lasts for three full calendar years.

New members

You can also earn CME for the year in which your membership is activated and apply these credits toward your first reelection cycle. This gives you additional time to earn the required credits during your first cycle.

Third-year family medicine residents

You can begin reporting CME on Jan. 1 in the year you complete your residency. It’s like getting an extra year to earn and report CME for the first reelection cycle.

How to find eligible CME and your reelection cycle status

Types of CME activities and credits

Formal CME includes activities that have been certified by the AAFP for prescribed or elective credit or certified by another AAFP-recognized system. Informal CME includes self-directed learning activities that are not certified for credit.

CME activities and credits

Prescribed credits include:

  • Advanced training (completing a fellowship)

  • Teaching† (instruction of health professions learners in formal individual or live educational formats)

  • Scholarly activity (participation in a research study)

  • ABFM or AOA board certification exam prep

  • All life support courses (ALSO, ACLS, ATLS, BLS, NALS, PALS, etc.)

  • CME produced by the AAFP including AFP and FPM journals, and free online CME products

  • AAFP chapter-produced CME

  • CME produced by other providers who have been approved for prescribed credit

†A maximum of 60 prescribed credits can be applied during a three-year reelection cycle for teaching.

Elective credits include activities approved for the AMA Physician’s Recognition Award Category 1 Credit™ or American Osteopathic Association credit, or Professional Enrichment (attending medical staff or medical society meetings).

Other activities that may be eligible for prescribed or elective CME credit include medical seminars or conferences, lecture series, advanced training, scholarly work such as clinical research, or medical writing or editing. (There may be limits on the number of credits from these types of activities applied to each reelection cycle.)

View all eligible CME credit types.

Your account has your reelection details

Unsure about your reelection cycle? Log into My Account and find your status in the reelection details tab.

Use AAFP CME Reporter

Use our CME Reporter to search for and document CME activities you’ve taken in journals and self-paced courses. You can also manually report CME with a paper form.

Need more information? Look through our obtain and report CME credit page.

Ways to report CME to AAFP for reelection

  • Access your CME transcript anytime under My Account.

  • Call the AAFP Member Resource Center (MRC) at (800) 274-2237 (Monday–Friday 8 a.m.–5:30 p.m. CT).

  • Send the reporting form to the Member Resource Center by fax at (913) 906-6075* or email.

  • Print the PDF form and mail to AAFP Member Resource Center, 11400 Tomahawk Creek Parkway, Leawood, KS 66211-2672*

*Send your completed CME reporting form or certificate of participation.

Frequently asked questions

If you’re not sure how the reelection cycle works or what to do if something looks off, this quick question and answer can help you understand the basics and stay on track.

  • You can quickly check your re-election status under My Account.
  • If you have questions, call the Member Resource Center at (800) 274-2237.

Yes. CME must be earned by Dec. 31 of the year your reelection cycle ends.

The CME credits don’t roll over. Credits must be recorded the same year they are completed.

This could be for one of four reasons:

  1. You haven’t reported the minimum requirement of 75 Prescribed credits.
  2. It’s possible you exceeded the maximum limits of:
    • Professional enrichment (limited to 25 credits during a three-year reelection cycle)
    • Teaching health professions (limited to 60 AAFP Prescribed credits during a three-year reelection cycle)
    • Advanced training (limited to 25 credits during a three-year reelection cycle)
    • ABFM or AOA Certification (limited to 30 credits during a three-year reelection cycle)
    • Scholarly Activities (limited to 100 credits during a three-year reelection cycle)
  3. You haven’t reported the minimum credits required by your chapter. Check with your chapter for more information.
  4. The 150 credits are not within your reelection cycle.

AAFP’s Bylaws don’t allow for an extension to earn CME credit.

If you're concerned that you don’t have the required CME credits, contact us at (800) 274-2237 or aafp@aafp.org. We can help get your CME recorded.

Members often find they have more CME than they thought after speaking with our Member Resource Center.

No. Evidence-based CME is not a requirement of membership.

It happens and we’re here to help. Contact the Member Resource Center to review your options or report CME to reinstate your membership.

We’re able to transfer CME you report to us directly to the ABFM at their request. The AAFP will provide the total number of CME credits a member has reported for a specified time frame. This process eliminates the need for members to submit their CME information to both organizations separately.

If you’ve only reported your CME to the ABFM, we can’t see that information. We’ll need you to report those credits via one of our reporting methods.

Questions?

Contact the Member Resource Center at (800) 274-2237 or aafp@aafp.org.