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Colorado Chiropractic CE

All Chiropractors with an Active Colorado license must complete a minimum of 30 hours of Continuing Education (CE) per two-year license period.  

  • If a Chiropractor has been licensed for a period of 12 months or less before the first renewal of their license, they are not required to complete CE for that renewal.
  • If a Chiropractor has been licensed for longer than 12 months but less than 24 months before the first license expiration date of their license, they are only requires to complete 15 CE hours for their first license renewal.

Audits of compliance are conducted after each renewal cycle ends.

Continuing Education Information

Continuing Education Standards

The Board does not pre-approve the CE courses, curriculum, or programs. Licensees are responsible for ensuring that CE courses comply with requirements. Standards for CE are listed below:

  • CE must have as its primary objective the increase of professional competence, and include scientific clinics, forums, or chiropractic educational study consisting of subjects basic to the field of the healing arts.
  • CE program sponsors/providers shall present continuing chiropractic education that constitutes a meritorious learning experience. If a sponsor/provider falsifies information regarding a course, the Board may require the sponsor's future courses to be pre-approved.
  • Courses in the promotion of practice building, office management, or that are outside the chiropractic scope of practice DO NOT satisfy the Board's requirements.
  • Any CE hours completed above the 30-hour requirement may not be "carried over" to the next license period to meet the CE requirements of that period.
  • There is no limit to the number of CE hours that can be completed in online CE courses and/or distance learning. Distance learning may include, but is not limited to, internet education programs, CDS, DVDs, video, and audio tapes. To obtain CE credit for distance learning, successful completion of a proficiency testing component is required.

Requirements and Additional Information

  • At least 4 of the 30 required hours must be in recordkeeping and documentation.
    • This requirement only applies after the first renewal of a license.
  • CE hours are based on 60-minute clock hours that can be rounded to the nearest quarter hour.
  • College/university academic credit conversion:
    • 1 semester hour = 15 CE credit hours.
    • 1 quarter hour = 8.5 CE credit hours.
  • Additional Continuing Education Credit Methods:
    • Instructor: Hour-for-hour credit will be granted to an instructor who prepares and teaches a continuing education program of no more than 10 hours per year.
    • Mediation: Hour-for-hour credit will be granted to any person approved by the Board who participates in mediation, arbitration, and other disciplinary resolution activities on behalf of the Board, up to 10 hours per year.
    • Examiner: Hour-for-hour credit will be granted to any person approved by the Board who serves as an Examiner for the Part IV Examination administered by the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners, up to 10 hours per year.

Specific requirements for Animal Chiropractic Only:

  • Chiropractors registered to perform Animal Chiropractic must complete an additional 20 hours of CE per license period that is specific to the diagnosis and treatment of animals authorized by Colorado statute. The 20 hours for this requirement are mandatory, regardless of the date of licensure. Fields of study are listed in sections 12-215-127(4) and (5), C.R.S.
    • The twenty hours must include a two-hour course on contagious, infectious, and zoonotic diseases, including current information about the incidence rates of rabies virus, West Nile virus, equine herpesvirus myeloencephalopathy, canine brucellosis, plague, and tularemia in Colorado and in other locations that might affect a licensed chiropractor’s animal patients.

CPR Certification Requirements

All actively licensed Colorado Chiropractors are required to maintain "Health Provider Level Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation" (CPR), as provided by the American Heart Association or a substantially similar nationally or internationally recognized organization. All active licensees must maintain proof of their CPR certification for a minimum of 4 years.

  • The hours necessary to maintain this CPR certification may be used towards the CE hours required by Board Rule for license renewal.

Documentation Requirements

Licensees must maintain their own CE records for at least 4 years. Documentation must be a certificate of completion, transcript, or written notice (by the CE provider) that includes the following:

  • Licensee's name
  • Dates of the CE program
  • Hours in attendance
  • A synopsis of the course content (course title)
  • Name of the course sponsor/provider

Documentation should not be submitted to the Board unless specifically requested.

Exception Options for Continuing Education

Below is a list of exceptions that may be requested. These are limited circumstances and require board approval:

  • Emergency Exemption: If any licensed chiropractor is unable to comply with the Board’s CE requirements on account of dire emergency and for good cause shown, the Board may waive the requirements.
    • A licensee requesting a waiver must send a written petition outlining the reasons for the request directly to the Board at dora_chiropractorsboard@state.co.us. The licensee will be notified of the Board's decision in writing.
  • Military Exemption: A licensee requesting a military exemption to their licensing fees and CE requirements may visit DPO’s Military License Renewal Information webpage for more information.