Recertification and Continuing Education Requirements

Certificates for Certified Emergency Response Coordinators shall be renewable every three (3) years upon submission of information that reflects 90 contact hours of continuing education. For purposes of this policy, the Public Health Practitioner Certification Board (PHPCB) sets forth the following criteria:

General Requirements

• In order to renew a certificate as a Certified Public Health Administrator, a certificate holder shall be required to complete 90 contact hours of continuing education (CE) relevant to emergency response and preparedness and public health practice. Contact hour is defined as 60 minutes of attendance.
• CE credit hours used to satisfy the CE requirements of another professional discipline may be applied to fulfill the CE requirements of the PHPCB.
• CE hours shall be earned by verified attendance (e.g., certificate of attendance or certificate of completion) at, or participation in a program, course or training that is offered and/or sponsored by an approved CE sponsor.
  • Approved CE Sponsors may include, but are not limited to, Federal, State, and local agencies, organizations, associations, and accredited colleges and universities.
• CE credit may be earned through postgraduate training programs or completion of public health related courses that are part of the cirriculum of a college, university, or graduate school. Courses that are part of the cirriculum of a university, college, or other educational institution shall be alloted CE credit at the rate of 15 CE hours for each semester hour or 10 CE hours for each quater hour of school credit awarded.
• CE credit may be earned for verified teaching in the field of public health practice or emergency response and preparedness in an accredited college, university, or graduate school and as an instructor of CE training programs and/or exercises and drills. Credit for this activity will be applied at the rate of 2 contact hours for every hour taught, but only for the first presentation of the program (i.e. credit shall not be allowed for repititious presentations of the same material).
• CE credit may be earned for authoring papers, publications, dissertations, or books and for preparing presentations and exhibits in the field of public health practice or emergency response and preparedness. The preparation of a published paper, a book chapter, or a professional presentation may each earn 5 hours of credit. A presentation must be made before an audience of professionals. The 5 credit hours may be claimed only the first time the material is published or presented. 

Certification of Compliance with CE Requirements
Each renewal applicant shall certify on the renewal application, full compliance with the CE requirements set forth herein.

Each certificate holder shall be required to complete 90 contact hours of CE every three-year renewal period and to retain all certificates and other documented evidence of participation in the approved/accredited continuing education programs for a period of at least (3) three years. Upon request such documentation shall be made available to the PHPCB for random audit and verification purposes. All contact hours must be completed at least sixty (60) days prior to the end of the renewal period.

Waiver of CE Requirements
Any recertification applicant seeking renewal of a certificate without having fully complied with these CE requirements shall file with the PHPCB a renewal application along with the required fee a statement setting forth the facts concerning non-compliance and request for waiver of the CE requirements on the basis of these facts. A request for waiver shall be made prior to the renewal date. If the PHPCB finds from such affidavit or any other evidence submitted that extreme hardship has been shown for granting a waiver, the PHPCB may waive enforcement of CE requirements, in part or in full, for the renewal period for which the applicant has applied. (Pease note that all fees are currently waived.)

Extreme hardship shall be determined on an individual basis by the PHPCB and be defined as an inability to devote sufficient hours to fulfilling the CE requirements during the applicable prerenewal period because of:

• Full-time service in the armed forces of the United States of America during a substantial part of the pre-renewal period;
• An incapacitating illness documented by a statement from a physician;
• A physical inability to travel to the sites of approved programs documented by a physician; or
• Any other similar extenuating circumstances.

Any recertification applicant who, prior to the expiration date of the certificate, submits a request for a waiver, in whole or in part, pursuant to the provisions of this Policy shall be deemed to be in good standing until the final decision on the application is made by the PHPCB.