US · guidance
CMS Pub. 100-08, ch. 10, § 10.2.3.5
Clinical Nurse Specialists
Federal regulations at 42 CFR § 410.76 state that a clinical nurse specialist must meet all of
the following requirements:
1. Be a registered nurse who is currently licensed to practice in the state where the
individual practices and be authorized to furnish the services of a clinical nurse
specialist in accordance with state law.
2. Have a master’s degree in a defined clinical area of nursing from an accredited
educational institution or a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) doctoral degree; and
3. Be certified as a clinical nurse specialist by a recognized national certifying body that
has established standards for clinical nurse specialists and that is approved by the
Secretary.
Pub. 100-02, chapter 15, section 210 states that CMS recognizes the following
organizations as national certifying bodies for clinical nurse specialists at the advanced
practice level:
a. American Academy of Nurse Practitioners
b. American Nurses Credentialing Center
c. National Certification Corporation for Obstetric, Gynecologic and
Neonatal Nursing Specialties
d. Pediatric Nursing Certification Board (previously named the National
Certification Board of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners and Nurses)
e. Oncology Nurses Certification Corporation
f. AACN Certification Corporation
g. National Board on Certification of Hospice and Palliative Nurses
h. Nurses Portfolio Credentialing Commission (NPCC)
History
(Rev. 13355; Issued: 08-13-25; Effective: 05-05-25; Implementation: 05-05-25)
Provenance
- Source
- cms.gov
- Retrieved
- 2026-08-25
- Edition
- iom-2026-08-25
- Content hash
bf9795339985f8dfef5d780bfbcf82a73ca7ac2afee7aa3b6bbd29ad63ee20dd
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