Changes to ABIM Maintenance of Certification (MOC) requirements in January 2014 indicated that in addition to the 10-year assessment requirement, diplomates who wanted to maintain their certification were required to complete 100 MOC points every 5 years. The end of the first 5-year period for many diplomates was December 31, 2018.

It came to the attention of the leadership of the four major cardiovascular specialty societies – the American College of Cardiology (ACC), Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI), and Heart Failure Society of America (HFSA) – that many cardiologists who had intended to remain certified were somehow unaware of the new process and missed the deadline.

Following a call between leadership of the societies and ABIM, steps were developed to help cardiologists whose certification status has changed to bring their certification into good standing.

Read the full letter shared by HFSA, ACC, HRS, and SCAI leadership

If you are one of those whose certification status has changed – or if you’d like to confirm what you need to do next – please follow these steps:

1. You should log into the ABIM Physician Portal of the ABIM website to learn more about your specific MOC requirements.
   1. Once logged in, red icons will show areas that are in need of attention.
   2. You can review your specific assessment, point, and attestation requirements by selecting “Menu”, “Home/Status” and then “My Assessments & Certificates” or “My MOC Points.”
   3. You can also update your contact information to ensure you are receiving ABIM communications by selecting “Profile”, then “My Profile” and expanding “Contact Information.”
2. If you are not certified because you need MOC points, you can become certified again almost immediately by completing the required number of outstanding points. ABIM’s collaboration with the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) provides the opportunity for ABIM Board Certified physicians to earn MOC points for thousands of accredited CME activities, many offered by one of the cardiology societies. Once you complete an activity, the CME provider will collect and submit your completed information so that ABIM may award your ABIM MOC points. (Note: the individual CME provider determines the timeframe and deadline for claiming MOC points.)
3. Multiple other opportunities to earn MOC points are available, and some of these MOC points are provided free of charge:
   1. Activities are available on the Heart Failure Society of America website
   2. On the ACC website, 202 medical knowledge activities, offering 158 points, can be accessed by any cardiologist, free of charge at the ACC Online Learning Catalog.
   3. ABIM Annual Updates are available at the ABIM website
4. If your hospital, payer or employer credentialing committees have raised concerns, ABIM will work with you to provide a letter for you to share with them that outlines what you need to remedy any temporary loss of certification. To discuss such a letter with ABIM, please see the contact information below.

If you have any questions about your specific ABIM status, please contact ABIM directly by phone or email. For additional information about medical knowledge opportunities, please contact the Heart Failure Society of America.