Bainbridge
Naturopathic Clinic

The following information has been adapted from the American Association of Naturopathic Physician‘s website.

Education and Licensing:

Currently, 16 states, the District of Columbia, and the United States territories of Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands have licensing laws for naturopathic doctors. In these states, naturopathic doctors are required to graduate from an accredited four-year residential naturopathic medical school and pass an extensive postdoctoral board examination (NPLEX) in order to receive a license.

The Naturopathic Physicians Licensing Examination (NPLEX) is the examination graduates of one of the approved naturopathic medical colleges must pass to be eligible for licensure in any of the 16 states or 5 provinces that license/register naturopathic physicians. The NABNE is responsible for qualifying applicants to take the NPLEX, administering the NPLEX to examinees, and preparing and sending exam results and transcripts to licensing/regulatory authorities.

The institutions that regulate naturopathic medicine grant authority to NABNE to be the examining body for the naturopathic profession through their agreement to use the results of the NPLEX Examinations in their determination of the candidate’s eligibility for licensure (United States) or registration (Canada).

Licensed naturopathic physicians must fulfill state-mandated continuing education requirements annually, and will have a specific scope of practice defined by their state’s law. The states that currently have licensing laws for naturopathic physicians are:

• Alaska
• Arizona
• California
• Connecticut
• District of Columbia
• Hawaii
• Idaho
• Kansas
• Maine
• Minnesota
• Montana
• New Hampshire
• North Dakota
• Oregon
• Utah
• Vermont
• Washington
• United States Territories: Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands

The Association of Accredited Naturopathic Medical Colleges (AANMC) was established in February 2001 to propel and foster the naturopathic medical profession by actively supporting the academic efforts of accredited and recognized schools of naturopathic medicine.

The Council on Naturopathic Medical Education’s (CNME) mission is quality assurance: serving the public by accrediting naturopathic medical education programs that voluntarily seek recognition that they meet or exceed CNME’s standards. Students and graduates of programs accredited or preaccredited (candidacy) by CNME are eligible to apply for the naturopathic licensing examinations administered by the North American Board of Naturopathic Examiners (NABNE), and are generally eligible for state and provincial licensure in the U.S. and Canada.`

The Council on Naturopathic Medical Education
Great Barrington, MA
Phone: 413-528-8877
President: Marcia Prenguber, ND
Executive Director: Daniel Seitz, JD, MAT
Email: staff@cnme.org

AANMC Member Schools: