There are several different ways to be allowed by ANCC to award contact hours for successful completion of continuing nursing education.
The first way is to apply to ANCC to become an ACCREDITED provider. Application fees range from $3,500 to $8,000 depending on the type of organization, the annual fee is $290, and there is a required site visit for which the applicant will pay the expenses (they average $2,000). (The Accreditation appraisers are all volunteers and receive no remuneration.) The initial accreditation term is for two years with the possible addition of two-four more years, during which time the provider may implement as many activities as wanted without further fees. The ANCC accreditation provider manual is available for $108, plus shipping and handling. It includes one hard copy and a CD. Please call 800-284-2378, ext 5232 to order it. Organizations that are accredited by ANCC are listed in our directory.
One of the eligibility criteria is that there be a "Nurse Planner" involved in the planning, implementation and evaluation of each CE activity. This person must have a graduate degree. If the graduate degree is not in nursing then the baccalaureate must be in nursing.
All RN licensing boards nationwide acknowledge and accept contact hours from accredited providers. The state licensing boards of California and Iowa have put some ‘caveats' on their acceptance. Both the California Board of Registered Nursing and the Iowa board say that if the provider ENTERS their state and presents an activity, the provider must also apply to the that state's board for approval, in order for the nurses from CA and IA to use the contact hours for renewing their licenses. The CA Board of Registered Nursing considers internet learning and other types of home study to be out-of-state, unless the provider is located in CA. They are in Sacramento, and their number is 916-322-3350. The Iowa Board of Nursing considers internet and other types of home study to be in-state. Their number is 515-281-3255.
The second option is to become an APPROVED provider through a constituent member association (CMA) that is an accredited approver through ANCC. SEE NOTE BELOW. Most CMAs are state nurses associations (do not confuse them with state licensing boards) The CMAs develop their own business plans and so have different application fees. See our website to see if your state nurses association is an accredited approver. Most of the listings have a web link to the named organization. You may use that to search the approver's web site for approval information or for phone numbers to call them. Approval is good for three years. The status with the RN licensing boards is the same as above.
The third option is to apply to one of our approvers (both CMAs as indicated above, and those specialty nursing organizations that have earned the ANCC approver accreditation) to have a specific educational activity approved for two years. The status with the RN licensing boards is the same as above. The processing of an application for approval typically takes about 6 – 8 weeks. There are a few accredited approvers that can approve an activity application in a shorter time frame for a higher fee. The note below does not pertain to this approval.
An eligibility requirement for the above two options is that the Nurse Planner have a baccalaureate in nursing.
PLEASE NOTE: Provider units that offer the majority of their educational activities to nurses in multiple regions (use the DHHS regions: www.hhs.gov/about/regions/ ), must apply to be accredited providers (option one above).