The National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) is offering a route to achieve national certification—without having to take any of the NCCAOM exams. This is specifically for California licensed acupuncturists that meet the eligibility requirements.
This option will be available the first quarter of 2019, and will close on December 31, 2020. Eligibility requirements for initial certification are as follows:
1. Document holding and have held, by Dec. 31, 2016, active California acupuncture license that is in good standing.
2. Submit a completed NCCAOM Reciprocal Certification application.
3. Pay the application fee.
4. Request document verification be sent to the NCCAOM of a completed Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (CCAOM) Clean Needle Technique (CNT) course that is current, i.e., taken within the last six years; or if the applicant has previously taken the CNT more than six years ago, complete the CCAOM CNT and Blood Borne Pathogen Review Course and submit documentation of completion to the NCCAOM.
To maintain certification, the Diplomate must recertify with the NCCAOM every four years, and meet all recertification requirements.
Kory Ward-Cook, CEO of the NCCAOM, said "Over the years, and especially more recently, we have been receiving numerous requests from California licensed acupuncturists inquiring about a route to NCCAOM certification without taking the required examinations. It's exciting to introduce and provide this new reciprocal route toward a certification in Oriental medicine for all California licensed acupuncturists who meet the requirements."
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