General Practitioners

Certification or Licensing

Board certification is granted by the American Board of Family Medicine. This credential, though voluntary, signifies that the physician is highly qualified in family practice. To be eligible to take the credentialing exam, applicants must have satisfactorily completed three years of residency training accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education after receiving their medical degree from an accredited institution.

All states and the District of Columbia require physicians to be licensed. General practitioners seeking licensure must graduate from an accredited medical school, complete residency postgraduate training, and pass a licensing examination administered by their state's board of medical examiners. Some states have reciprocity agreements so that a physician licensed to practice in one state may be automatically licensed in another state without having to pass another examination.