Guidelines for Maintenance of Certification
by the American Board of Bioanalysis (ABB)

Under the PEER program, ABB Diplomates and Certificants are required to document 2.4 CEUs (24 contact hours) of acceptable continuing education every two years.

Determination of Deadline for Continued ABB Certification

ABB Individuals will have from January 1 to December 31 of the year they are first certified, plus an additional two (2) years, to meet their first CEU requirement of 2.4 CEUs (24 contact hours).  After that first three-year period, each Diplomate or Certificant will have 2 years to document the 2.4 CEUs needed to maintain ABB certification.

ABB's Two-Year Recording Period

The two-year recording period begins on January 1 and concludes on December 31 of the following year.

ABB Annual Fee Required

There is an annual CEU recording fee for all ABB Diplomates and Certificants that is required for participation in the PEER program.   This fee must be paid to maintain their ABB certification.

Official CEU Transcript

ABB Diplomates and Certificants receive an official transcript of CEU credits twice each year, in July (mid-year) and February (preceding year-end).

CEU transcripts may be obtained at other times of the year for a $15 CEU transcript fee.  Requests for these transcripts must be submitted in writing to the PEER office.

ABB Retirement

Individuals who are no longer active in the clinical laboratory field, but who wish to maintain their ABB certification, are required to comply with the PEER Continuing Education requirements.

ABB Extension of Deadline

Upon written request and explanation, PEER may, at its discretion, allow a grace period of 90 days beyond the period for the accumulation of CEU credits by an individual, provided the written request is received prior to the deadline.

PEER has established the following five categories of CEU credit:

A1:	Formal, structured, continuing education program with live faculty
A2:	Multi-media programs with no live faculty.   Utilizing slides, video tapes, audio conference, video conference, web conference, etc.
A3:	Home-study program - Correspondence and Self-instructional Courses including course evaluation
A4:	Formal, academic credit (semester hours or quarter hours)
A5:	Presentation of Scientific Seminar/Lecture/Workshop or Participation at an Item Writing Workshop

College credits acceptable to PEER may be substituted for CEUs.  Two (2) semester hours or three (3) quarter hours are equivalent to 2.0 CEUs.

At least one (1) contact hour is required for CEU credit, i.e., a minimum of 0.1 CEU will be awarded and recorded.

CEU credit will be awarded based on the number of contact hours during the presentation.  CEU credit will only be awarded the first time a particular topic is presented.

Every attempt should be made by the individual to submit CEU documentation to PEER within 30 days of the date of the program attended.  If an individual is unable to do so, he/she must inform the PEER office (in writing) of the reason for the delay in order to receive CEU credit.

CEU Documentation Should Include:

A program formally approved by PEER in advance will be given a unique identification number.  The attendees of a PEER-approved program should receive a CEU recording form to complete, along with a sticker with the unique program identification number as verification of attendance.

This number should appear on the program brochure or informational literature.   Without this number, the program has not been formally approved by PEER.

A Certificate of Attendance, or a letter signed by the sponsor, that verifies attendance at the program should be submitted, along with a program brochure or program description that contains the title, course description, length in hours, date, location, and the name and credentials of the instructor/speaker.

Certificates of Attendance must be signed by the sponsor or program official.   Transcripts of formal education must originate from the Registrar's office of the college or university.

CEU Recording Forms and Program Approval Forms are available at no charge by contacting PEER.  CEU Recording Forms are also available for printing online.

Questions, comments or requests for the forms mentioned above should be directed to PEER at the address listed below:

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