Every CE requirement verified against official state nursing board sources. How RenewRN verifies the data →
Every CE requirement verified against official state nursing board sources. How RenewRN verifies the data →
Field guide · Free CE
Nurse practitioners, CNMs and CNSs in 16 states owe pharmacology hours, most often only when they hold prescriptive authority. Free ANCC-accredited pharmacology CE below, from a one-hour board module to the University of Washington curricula that list pharmacology credit lesson by lesson.
8 courses · Last reviewed October 27, 2026
Before you rely on these for a state mandate
Ten of these boards (Arkansas, Connecticut, DC, Hawaii, Louisiana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Washington) count only pharmacology CE that relates to your certification specialty or population focus, and Pennsylvania takes it only from a Board-approved provider. The University of Washington courses are infectious-disease pharmacology, so they fit primary-care, HIV and public-health practice and do not fit CRNA practice. Open your state's page before counting any course here toward a pharmacology requirement.
Required CE in 16 jurisdictions
Jump to a state page for the full requirement, hours, and acceptable provider list.
Showing 8 of 8 courses
Arkansas State Board of Nursing
The Board's own free course on prescription drug abuse and misuse, mandatory for APRNs with prescriptive authority before renewal and board-approved for contact hours.
Free; hosted on CE Broker (free basic account required).
Elite Learning
Over 70 free CE courses across clinical specialties: patient safety, pharmacology, infection control, ethics. ANCC-accredited and accepted nationally.
Free Elite Learning account required.
Medscape Education
Large, rotating library of free ANCC-accredited nursing CE across clinical specialties, pharmacology, and chronic-disease management. Genuinely free with an account.
Free Medscape account required; specific activities rotate and expire.
SOWEGA AHEC
Free 1.5-contact-hour on-demand program from Southwest Georgia AHEC covering medical cannabis and Georgia's cannabis laws for older adults. The Georgia Board of Nursing deems SOWEGA-AHEC an approved provider, and the activity is approved toward Georgia licensure renewal.
Free (register via Eventbrite); recording available through July 23, 2028. Registration, attendance, and completed evaluation/post-test required; no partial credit.
University of Washington IDEA Program (CDC-funded)
12 free contact hours of hepatitis B self-study, and 9 of those hours carry pharmacology CE for advanced practice nurses. Covers screening and diagnosis, treatment and monitoring, HBV reactivation, hepatocellular carcinoma screening, preventing perinatal transmission and occupational postexposure prophylaxis.
Free, with no cost to claim CE. A free account is required. Each lesson states its own hours and how many count as APRN pharmacology. Most states require APRN pharmacology hours to relate to your specialty, population focus or scope of practice, so check this course against your own practice area before counting it toward a pharmacology requirement.
University of Washington IDEA Program (CDC-funded)
37 free contact hours of HCV self-study, and 15 of those hours carry pharmacology CE for advanced practice nurses. Covers screening and diagnosis, fibrosis staging, simplified treatment for all genotypes, retreatment, cirrhosis complications, and treatment in HIV coinfection, renal impairment, pregnancy and substance use.
Free, with no cost to claim CE. A free account is required. Each lesson states its own hours and how many count as APRN pharmacology. Most states require APRN pharmacology hours to relate to your specialty, population focus or scope of practice, so check this course against your own practice area before counting it toward a pharmacology requirement. Print or claim earned CE before the current accreditation period ends, because unclaimed work does not carry over to the next edition.
University of Washington IDEA Program (CDC-funded)
32.5 free contact hours across 10 self-study lessons and 29 question-bank topics, and 13 of those hours carry pharmacology CE for advanced practice nurses. Covers chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis including congenital syphilis, herpes, HPV, PID, vaginitis, mpox and penicillin allergy.
Free, with no cost to claim CE. Registration is required before starting a lesson. Each lesson and question-bank topic states its own hours and how many count as APRN pharmacology. Most states require APRN pharmacology hours to relate to your specialty, population focus or scope of practice, so check this course against your own practice area before counting it toward a pharmacology requirement.
University of Washington IDEA Program (HRSA-funded)
Up to 77.5 free contact hours across the 4th Edition self-study lessons and a 290-question board-review bank, and 57.5 of those hours carry pharmacology CE for advanced practice nurses. Covers antiretroviral therapy and drug interactions, screening and diagnosis, co-occurring conditions, and prevention including PrEP.
Free, with no cost to claim CE. A free account is required to track progress and claim credit. Each lesson states its own hours and how many count as APRN pharmacology. Most states require APRN pharmacology hours to relate to your specialty, population focus or scope of practice, so check this course against your own practice area before counting it toward a pharmacology requirement. ⚠ This does NOT satisfy the Florida or Nevada HIV/AIDS mandates, which require state-specific content.
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