Question

How do I renew my CNA license and change my address in West Virginia?

Answer 1

In West Virginia, completion of the re-registration or renewal application is the responsibility of the applicant and not the facility or employer. The following is required:

1. Re-registration of the nurse aide status on the registry is required every two (2) years.
2. The minimum amount of paid employment as a nurse aide is eight (8) hours within the previous two year period.

The following policy will be adhered to for nurse aide re-registration:

1. At least 60 days before the nurse aide’s registration expiration date, the OHFLAC-NAP will send either an electronic notice or a re-registration application with instructions to the nurse aide through the U.S. mail to his or her last known address.
2. The nurse aide must complete the re-registration application (hard copy or online) and return the application prior to the expiration date.
3. For employers other than nursing homes such as staffing agencies or in-home care, the nurse aide must complete the renewal application and have the non-facility based employer verify the nurse aide worked at least eight hours performing paid nurse aide duties within the two years since the last renewal.
4. When all requirements are met, the OHFLAC-NAP will send a letter to the nurse aide informing him or her of renewal for another two years.

Online re-registration can only be completed if you are not submitting any private duty information on your application.

For the WV Nurse Aide Registry to maintain current information, nurse aides must provide updated information to the Registry whenever a name or address change occurs. A nurse aide can report a change to the OHFLAC-NAP in writing to explain what changes need to be made. Below is contact information for the WV Nurse Aide/AMAP Programs:

Office of Health Facility Licensure & Certification
408 Leon Sullivan Way
Charleston, WV 25301
(304) 558-0050 (phone)
(304) 558-1442 (fax)

Also, address changes may be reported either by indicating the change on the renewal application, email, fax or by telephoning the OHFLAC-NAP.

Answer 2

Completing the renewal application is how you update that kind of information. When you start the application, you will need to fill out the address, contact information, and possibly even part of the employment history fields. All this is required information and the application will not go through if those fields are blank. When the NAP approves your application, the information you provided on it is included on your records with them. 

Completing the renewal application is the most basic way to maintain that information, but a WV nurse aide may also update their address between expiration if they wish by contacting the appropriate office. 

The verification document draws from the most recent information from your records, but only the OHFLAC office accesses and uses the finer details.  At best, only a couple things change on your verification when information is updated: it shows only the city and state recognized as your current location and your employment may change if/when you list new work data on the application. If you look at your verification document at some point later and your information no longer looks right, an update to your information may be needed. The updates are not automatic and are the nurse aide's responsibility to communicate with OHFLAC by either of the mentioned methods. 

Nothing from the NAP will be missing or lost if/when you change address information. OHFLAC has not mailed any kind of registration information for several years and they will not continue the process anytime soon. But keeping current address and contact information is still necessary in the event you need to be contacted regarding an allegation or some other reason. 

Please note: Name changes require a different process of sending the OHFLAC a copy of the legal document that changes your name for them to verify and update. Your new/different name cannot be accepted on a renewal until the NAP changes it. Contact the appropriate office for more details on how to complete a name change.