Oklahoma has become the first state to enact a law  to remove maintenance of certification (MOC) as a requirement for physicians to obtain a license, get hired and paid, or get hospital- admitting privileges.

Medscape reported that Kentucky’s governor has signed a more limited measure that prohibits making MOC a condition of licensure.

Similar laws are proposed in other states as the  rebellion against hated MOC programs operating under the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS)  becomes more intense. Physicians have long complained about the cost in time and money of these programs.

Internists and internal medical subspecialists have been the fiercest critics, protesting that the MOC program of the American Board of Internal Medicine (ABIM) in particular wastes their time and money and does little to nothing to improve their patient-care abilities.