2024 Medical Doctor Renewal FAQs for Physicians Licensed Pursuant to the IMLC (IMLC Pathway Licensees Whose Last Names Begin With the Letters A - L)
Effective at 11:59 pm Eastern Daylight Time (EDT) on June 30, 2024, all current licenses for physicians whose last names begin with the letters A through L (“A through L physicians”) will expire unless successfully renewed during the Board’s renewal period.
License renewal for A through L physicians begins on May 1, 2024 at 8:30 am, and ends promptly at 4:30 pm EDT on Friday, June 28, 2024. Failure to renew by this deadline will result in licensure expiration. Because there is no grace period for practice after expiration, the Board strongly encourages early renewal to avoid unexpected problems or delays in renewal completion.
Renewal Process and Fees
- Do I need to renew my license in 2024?
- Am I eligible to renew?
- How do I renew my license?
- I have been disqualified from renewing through the IMLC. Can I still renew my West Virginia medical license?
- Who can renew my license for me?
- How much does it cost to renew my license?
- How do I pay my renewal fee?
- What is a Controlled Substance Dispensing Practitioner Registration?
- I have a Controlled Substance Dispensing Practitioner Registration for the office-based dispensing and/or administering of controlled substances. Does it renew when I renew my medical license?
- I am not interested in keeping my West Virginia license. Do I need to renew?
- I don’t want to keep my West Virginia license, but I do have a complaint with the Board that has not yet been resolved. What happens if I let my license expire?
- I can’t finish my IMLC renewal application by 4:30 pm EDT on Friday, June 28, 2024. What happens now?
- My license expired on June 30, 2024. How do I get it back?
- How long does it take to get a license reinstated?
- Can I practice while the Board processes my reinstatement application?
- How do I get my wallet card?
General West Virginia Renewal Addendum Questions
- What is the West Virginia Renewal Addendum?
- How do I receive and complete the West Virginia Renewal Addendum?
- Do I need a DocuSign account to complete the West Virginia Renewal Addendum?
- Will I need to upload documents to complete my West Virginia Renewal Addendum?
- What happens if I renew through the IMLC and do not complete the West Virginia Renewal Addendum within 30 days?
- Why are you asking me about my child support?
- Can I review the Professional Practice, Character and Fitness Questions before I complete the West Virginia Renewal Addendum?
- Why do you want to know my anticipated retirement date?
- I was arrested and charged with driving under the influence and reckless driving on New Year’s Eve in 2022. The charges were bogus and were later dismissed. Do I need to report this on my West Virginia Renewal Addendum?
- What malpractice will I be required to report during renewal?
- I am a voluntary confidential participant in the WVMPHP. Do I have to report this on my renewal application?
- I’ve already renewed, but I have new information that changes one of my answers. What do I do?
Continuing Medical Education
- Are there CME requirements for renewal?
- How much and what kind of CME do I need?
- I am Board certified. Do I have to do CME?
- I am a resident/fellow. Do I have to do CME?
- Who has to take the drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME?
- I think I have only written one controlled substance prescription since July 1, 2022. Am I eligible for a waiver of the drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME?
- I only prescribe controlled substances outside of West Virginia. Am I eligible for a waiver of the drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME?
- I have not prescribed any controlled substances whatsoever since July 1, 2022. How do I get a waiver of the drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME?
- I took a Board-approved drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME in May or June of 2022. Do I have to take it again?
- I took three one-hour prescribing CMEs last year. Do these courses satisfy the prescribing course requirement?
- I took a Controlled Substance CME for my license renewal in another state. Can I use this course to satisfy West Virginia’s prescribing CME requirement?
- How can I find a Board-approved course?
- Has the Board approved any online courses that satisfy the drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME requirement?
Registration with the Controlled Substance Monitoring Program Database
- What is the CSMP and what does it have to do with renewing my medical license?
- Is my CSMP registration the same as my DEA registration?
- Who has to be registered with the CSMP for medical license renewal?
- I prescribe controlled substances, but not in West Virginia. Do I have to register with the CSMP?
- What information will I need about CSMP registration for renewal?
Contact the Board
- Who can I call at the Board with a question about renewal?
- What email address should I use for questions about 2024 Renewal?
If your last name begins with the letters A through L, and you want to keep your West Virginia license after June 30, 2024, you need to apply for renewal during the 2024 renewal process.
There are specific statutory requirements you must satisfy to be eligible to renew, including specific continuing medical education requirements. Additionally, if you have prescribed or dispensed any Schedule II, III, IV and/or V controlled substances pursuant to a West Virginia medical license you must have obtained and maintained access to the West Virginia Board of Pharmacy's Controlled Substance Monitoring Program (CSMP) database. Finally, expedited licensees who have been disqualified from renewing through the IMLC by the Interstate Medical Licesnure Compact Commission may not utilize this pathway to maintain licensure.
Renewal of your IMLC pathway West Virginia medical license is a two-step process.
STEP 1
- Beginning May 1, 2024, complete the IMLC renewal application. The Board will send you a link to the IMLC renewal page on May 1, 2024.
- Submit your payment to the IMLC. The West Virginia medical license renewal fee is $400. The IMLC service fee for renewal is $25. Accordingly, your total payment to the IMLC will be $425.
STEP 2
- After you successfully complete the IMLC renewal process, including payment of your West Virginia renewal fee and IMLC processing fee, Board staff will transmit the West Virginia Renewal Addendum to you via DocuSign to your email address on record with the Board. You must complete, sign and submit your West Virginia Renewal Addendum within 30 days to complete the renewal process.
- Upon receipt of your complete West Virginia Renewal Addendum, the Board will email you a copy of your renewal wallet card.
If you received your West Virginia license through the expedited licensure process of the IMLC and are disqualified from renewing through the IMLC, please contact the Board to discuss your options.
You are the only person authorized to renew your license. The IMLC renewal application and the West Virginia Renewal Addendum include several certifications and attestations that require you to personally complete and submit your renewal application. Allowing anyone else to complete these certifications and/or attestations on your behalf can constitute misconduct and/or fraud.
The West Virginia renewal fee is $400. The IMLC service fee for renewal is $25. Accordingly, your total payment to the IMLC will be $425.
Submit payment to the IMLC through the IMLC renewal portal. The Board will send you a link to the IMLC renewal page on May 1, 2024.
Physicians who dispense and/or administer controlled substances (including free samples) in an office-based setting in West Virginia must be registered with the Board as a Controlled Substance Dispensing Practitioner. To renew as a Controlled Substance Dispensing Practitioner first renew your medical license, then submit a 2024 Controlled Substance Dispensing Practitioner Registration Renewal Application and make the appropriate payment by 4:30 pm EDT on Friday, June 28, 2024. For other questions regarding Controlled Substance Dispensing Practitioner Registration, please review the 2024 Controlled Substance Dispensing Practitioner Registration FAQs or email the Board.
No. If you currently have a Controlled Substance Dispensing Practitioner Registration for one or more locations, your registration(s) will expire at 11:59 EDT on June 30, 2024. You must submit a paper application to renew an existing controlled substance dispensing practitioner registration or to obtain a new registration. All current registrants will receive an email renewal notification in April 2024.
No. If you do not want to renew your West Virginia license, simply do nothing and it will expire at 11:59 pm EDT on June 30, 2024. Please be aware that license expiration while under investigation by the Board is reportable to the National Practitioner Data Bank.
If you permit your license to expire while the Board is investigating a complaint against you, your license expiration is reportable to the National Practitioner Data Bank for allowing your license to expire while under, or to avoid, investigation.
Your license will expire at 11:59 pm EDT on June 30, 2024. You may not practice medicine or surgery, write prescriptions or administer prescription drugs in West Virginia with an expired license under any circumstances.
Please renew early to allow for unforeseen circumstances. If you attempt to renew on June 28, 2024, and do not complete the IMLC process, including payment, before 4:30 pm EDT on June 28, 2024, your license will expire.
Between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025, you may apply for reinstatement of an expired West Virginia license. IMLC licensees may apply to reinstate, or they may opt out of the IMLC process and submit an initial application for a traditional pathway license. Please contact the Board at Samantha.N.Gutierrez@wv.gov for more information regarding re-licensure options. The reinstatement application is similar to a renewal application, but it also requires submission of CME documentation. The reinstatement fee is $600. There is also a $25 dollar renewal fee required by the IMLC. The reinstatement application, with instructions, will be posted on the Board’s website beginning July 1, 2024.
After June 30, 2025, you will need to apply for re-licensure, either by applying anew to the Board for a traditional pathway license or by submitting a valid LOQ.
It depends. If your license expires and you apply for reinstatement in early July, please expect an interruption in your ability to practice. To avoid prolonged delays, please read the reinstatement instructions carefully, provide accurate and complete answers to all of the application questions, submit appropriate and complete CME documentation, and pay the correct fee.
If your reinstatement application includes discrepant information, it cannot be approved until after it is reviewed by the Licensure Committee. The first Licensure Committee meeting where reinstatement applications will be discussed is on July 15, 2024.
No. You cannot practice until your application has been approved. Reinstatement is not retroactive.
Upon receipt of your complete West Virginia Renewal Addendum, the Board will email you a copy of your renewal wallet card.
The West Virginia Renewal Addendum is a state-specific supplemental requirement for the renewal of an expedited license in West Virginia. This is Step 2 of the renewal process for all physicians renewing through the IMLC in this state.
After you successfully complete the IMLC renewal process, including payment of your West Virginia renewal fee and IMLC processing fee, Board staff will transmit the West Virginia Renewal Addendum to you via DocuSign to your email address on record with the Board. You must complete, sign and submit your West Virginia Renewal Addendum within 30 days to complete the renewal process.
No. You do not need to have a DocuSign Account to complete and submit the West Virginia Renewal Addendum.
Maybe. If you answer yes to certain Professional Practice, Character and Fitness Questions, you may be required to upload documents supporting or explaining your answer(s). DocuSign supports uploading documents with your completed West Virginia Renewal Addendum.
Failure to complete and return the forms within thirty days will result in a referral to the Complaint Committee for possible disciplinary action.
West Virginia state law requires all licensing boards to ask applicants about court-ordered child support obligations.
Absolutely. The Board strongly encourages you to review and thoughtfully consider the Professional Practice, Character and Fitness Questions and your answers in advance renewing. Providing false, misleading or inaccurate answers to these questions can result in disciplinary action.
The West Virginia Legislature has tasked the Board with collecting retirement and practice data from renewal applicants to help in workforce planning. If you aren’t sure when you will retire, please provide your best estimate.
Question number two of the Professional Practice, Character and Fitness Questions in the West Virginia Renewal Addendum asks:
2. During the last two-year registration period of July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2024 have you, in any jurisdiction, for any reason been charged with or convicted of or pled nolo contendere to any felony or misdemeanor?
You must answer yes to this question and provide a detailed explanation of the facts and circumstances if you have ever been charged with or convicted of (or pled no contest to) a felony or misdemeanor, even if the charge/conviction was bogus, dismissed, deferred or expunged.
On your West Virginia Renewal Addendum (Step 2 of the IMLC renewal process), you are required to report and explain the facts and circumstances surrounding any medical malpractice settlement or judgment rendered against you between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2024. You can provide the case information, including case number, settlement/judgment amount, and circumstances in a text box on the application interface, or by uploading a document as an attachment to your application. If you renew early, and settle a case prior to July 1, 2024, email the Board for instructions on how to amend your application.
No. If you have a voluntary confidential agreement with the West Virginia Medical Professionals Health Program and are in good standing with the WVMPHP, you do not have to report this on your West Virginia Renewal Addendum, and you may answer “No” to Professional Practice, Character and Fitness Question Number 13.
If your answer to any application question should change for any reason prior to July 1, 2024, you have a duty to amend your IMLC renewal application and/or your West Virginia Renewal Addendum. Please email the Board for instructions on how to amend your application.
Yes. You cannot renew your license until you have completed your required CME for the July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2024 licensure cycle.
Mandatory Controlled Substance CME for all Licensees
If you have prescribed, administered, or dispensed any controlled substances pursuant to a West Virginia license between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2024, you are required to complete 3-hours of Board-approved CME in drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training between July 1, 2022 and the date you submit your IMLC renewal application. This mandatory course can only be waived if you have not prescribed, administered or dispensed any controlled substances pursuant to a West Virginia license during this time frame. The Board maintains a list of all drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME courses that have been approved by the Board since July 1, 2022.
In addition to the mandatory drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training, there are four pathways to satisfy your CME obligation for this renewal cycle.
Option 1 Classic CME
Complete 50 hours of CME which is designated as Category I by the AMA or AAFP.
- 30 hours of your CME must be in your area(s) of specialty.
- You may count up to 20 hours of medical student teaching/preceptorship in your 50-hour total.
- Your 3-hour Board-approved drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME can be used for 3 of your 50 CME hours.
Option 2 ABMS Certification/Recertification Exam
You may satisfy all of your CME requirements except your 3-hour Board-approved drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME requirement if you sit for and pass a certification or recertification examination of an ABMS member board and receive certification or recertification between July 1, 2022 and the date you submit your IMLC renewal application.
Option 3 Active Participation in MOC
You may satisfy all of your CME requirements except your 3-hour Board-approved drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME requirement if you can provide documentation of successful involvement in maintenance of certification (MOC) from an ABMS member board between July 1, 2022 and the date you submit your IMLC renewal application.
Option 4 One Full Year of ACGME Approved Training
You may satisfy all of your required CME hours except your 3-hour Board-approved drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME requirement if you can provide documentation of successful completion of one full year of ACGME approved postgraduate training between July 1, 2022 and the date you submit your IMLC renewal application.
Yes. Board certification does not excuse you from CME requirements. However, you may satisfy all of your CME requirements except your 3-hour Board-approved drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME requirement if you: (1) pass a certification or recertification examination of an ABMS member board and receive certification or recertification between July 1, 2022 and the date you submit your renewal application; or (2) you can provide documentation of successful involvement in maintenance of certification (MOC) from an ABMS member board between July 1, 2022 and the date you submit your IMLC renewal application.
You may satisfy all of your required CME hours except your 3-hour Board-approved drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME requirement if you can provide documentation of successful completion of one full year of ACGME approved postgraduate training between July 1, 2022 and the date you submit your IMLC renewal application.
If you have prescribed, administered, or dispensed any controlled substance whatsoever pursuant to your West Virginia license between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2024, you are required to complete 3-hours of Board-approved CME in drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training between July 1, 2022 and the date you submit your IMLC renewal application. This mandatory course can only be waived if you have not prescribed, administered or dispensed any controlled substances whatsoever pursuant to your West Virginia license during this time frame. The Board maintains a list of all drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME courses that have been approved by the Board since July 1, 2022.
No, you are not eligible for a waiver. If you have prescribed, administered or dispensed any controlled substances whatsoever pursuant to your West Virginia license since July 1, 2022, this CME is mandatory for license renewal.
You are eligible for a waiver if you have not prescribed any controlled substances in West Virginia or to patients who are located in West Virginia.
You can request a waiver on the CME portion of your West Virginia Renewal Addendum by making the appropriate attestation.
Yes. You have to take this mandatory CME every renewal cycle unless you are eligible for a waiver. Your May or June 2022 course cannot be used this cycle. To satisfy the requirement for your current renewal, you must have taken the course on or after July 1, 2022.
Maybe. To satisfy this mandatory CME requirement, your course must appear on the Board-approved list. There is currently one Board approved course that is a three part series and can be used to satisfy this CME requirement.
No. To satisfy this mandatory CME requirement, your course must appear on the Board-approved list.
The Board maintains a list of all drug diversion training and best practice prescribing of controlled substances training CME courses that have been approved by the Board since July 1, 2022.
Yes. Online courses are included on the Board’s approved list.
The West Virginia Board of Pharmacy’s Controlled Substance Monitoring Program (CSMP) is an online controlled substance prescription dispensing data collection and tracking system. Under certain circumstances, prescribers are required to review patient information in association with making prescribing decisions. Pursuant to state law, if you prescribe or dispense any controlled substances pursuant to your West Virginia medical license, you must obtain and maintain access to the CSMP database.
If you have prescribed or dispensed any controlled substances in West Virginia at any time since July 1, 2022, you must be registered to access the CSMP database in order to renew your license. You will need the date of registration from your CSMP Registration Certificate to complete your West Virginia Renewal Addendum.
No. Your DEA registration is completely different from your registration to access the Board of Pharmacy’s CSMP database.
If you prescribe or dispense Schedule II, III, IV and/or V controlled substances pursuant to your West Virginia medical license, you must obtain and maintain access to the CSMP database.
No. If you do not prescribe or dispense any controlled substances pursuant to your West Virginia medical license, you do not need to register with the CSMP.
You will need to know the date you originally registered with the CSMP for access to the database. This date appears on your CSMP Registration Certificate issued by the Board of Pharmacy. If you need a copy of your certificate, please contact the West Virginia Board of Pharmacy.
Prior to contacting the Board, please review the renewal FAQs carefully before reaching out to the Board with questions. The overwhelming majority of telephone inquiries the Board received regarding renewal in 2023 were resolvable by reviewing the 2023 Renewal FAQs and other information readily available on the Board’s website. Please email questions that cannot be resolved via the FAQs to wvbom@wv.gov.
If this email link does not work with your browser or email account, please email the Board at wvbom@wv.gov.
