Texas nurse aide training with a virtual classroom, built to 26 TAC 556

Texas rules let a NATCEP teach the 60 classroom hours in person or virtually, then deliver 40 clinical hours itself with one instructor for every 10 trainees. Online training carries its own conditions in 26 TAC 556.3(p): prove the trainee who registered is the one who finished, protect their data and document their hours. We build the virtual classroom and the clinical record on your site so those conditions hold up when HHSC reviews you.

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What HHSC requires of an online course

Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC). Summarized from the rule text, with the citation for each so you can check it yourself.

  1. 01

    60 classroom hours, in person or virtual

    26 TAC 556.3(o)

    Training totals 100 hours: 60 classroom hours taught by the NATCEP in person or virtually, or completed through the HHSC computer-based training within the preceding 12 months, plus 40 clinical hours with at least one program instructor for every 10 trainees.

  2. 02

    Same trainee from registration to completion

    26 TAC 556.3(p)

    A NATCEP offering online training adopts and enforces procedures to verify the trainee identity, protect their privacy and personal information, and document the hours each trainee completes. The application must verify the course has those security features.

  3. 03

    Session records with a verified sign-in

    26 TAC 556.3(z)(1)

    Records for every classroom session, in person or online, and every clinical session include dates and times, each trainee name and social security number, when each trainee attended, a pass or fail final grade, and a sign-in. An electronic sign-in must include identity verification.

  4. 04

    Required hours before any resident contact

    26 TAC 556.3(q), (u) and (w)(1)

    Trainees complete the first 16 introductory hours, Section I of the curriculum, and eight hours of infection control including proper use of PPE before any direct contact with a resident.

  5. 05

    Skills documented on Form 5497-NATCEP

    26 TAC 556.3(y)

    The performance record documents the duties or skills taught, the trainee performance, whether it was satisfactory, and the instructor who supervised it. The trainee, and the employer if any, get a copy at completion.

  6. 06

    A competency check before clinical starts

    HHSC PL 2024-08

    Before the 40-hour clinical training, the NATCEP verifies the trainee is competent in the classroom material, whether it was learned online or in person, and documents performance on Form 5497-NATCEP.

  7. 07

    The free HHSC course must be accepted

    26 TAC 556.3(r), (s) and (z)(2)

    A NATCEP must accept proof of completion of the HHSC 60-hour classroom CBT in place of the 16 introductory hours and the eight infection control hours, and keep the HHSC certificate as the classroom record.

Would your course pass HHSC today?

7 questions, one per rule above, about how you deliver the course now. You see the result right away.

Question 1 of 7

26 TAC 556.3(o)

60 classroom hours, in person or virtual

Training totals 100 hours: 60 classroom hours taught by the NATCEP in person or virtually, or completed through the HHSC computer-based training within the preceding 12 months, plus 40 clinical hours with at least one program instructor for every 10 trainees.

Does your current setup do this?

How the platform is built to it

Your course, on your site, under your name. Every requirement above is a feature, not a promise in the application.

Virtual sessions that open with an identity check

Each classroom session starts with a sign-in that verifies the trainee, so every sign-in record carries the identity verification 556.3(z)(1)(E) asks for, stamped with the date and time.

Hours documented per trainee, data locked down

Attendance time is logged per session and rolls up per trainee. Social security numbers are encrypted and visible only to staff who need them, which covers the privacy half of 556.3(p)(2).

A gate on resident contact

The 16 introductory hours and eight infection control hours are tracked as their own requirement, and clinical scheduling stays locked until a trainee clears both or has an accepted CBT certificate.

Clinical hours and Form 5497 checkoffs by the instructor

Instructors log each clinical session and record every skill as satisfactory or unsatisfactory under their own name. Scheduling holds clinical groups to 10 trainees per instructor, and the performance record exports for the trainee and employer.

A CBT intake path

Trainees who finished the HHSC CBT upload the certificate. Staff confirm the seal, training name, hours, completion date and course code PL 2024-08 lists, the 12-month window is checked, and the trainee moves to the competency check.

The path to HHSC approval

  1. 1

    Line up staff who meet 26 TAC 556.5: an RN program director and an LVN or RN instructor, each with two years of nursing experience and adult teaching or aide supervision background, and one of them with a year of long term care in a nursing facility.

  2. 2

    Apply through TULIP, the HHSC online portal, with a separate application for each training location and at least one clinical site that has the equipment for skills training.

  3. 3

    Verify on the application that the online course has the identity, privacy and hours documentation features 556.3(p)(2) requires.

  4. 4

    HHSC notifies you within 90 days of a complete application, and any deficiency notice gives you 10 days to correct it.

  5. 5

    Do not solicit or enroll trainees before approval. Renew every two years, filing at least 30 days before the approval expires, and get HHSC approval before training under any changed application information.

The terms

We are building one right now for a state-approved online school in Virginia, in English and Spanish, on the same terms.

One flat fee
Quoted per course before any work starts. No hourly billing and no surprise line items.
Final payment on approval
The last payment is due when the regulator approves the course, so the platform has to pass review before it is paid for in full.
No per-student fees
You keep what every enrollment pays. Nothing is skimmed per seat, per certificate or per month of traffic.
You own it
The platform, the code and the student records are yours outright, on your site and under your brand.

Questions schools ask

Can Texas nurse aide training be taken online?

The classroom part can. 26 TAC 556.3(o) lets the NATCEP teach the 60 classroom hours in person or virtually. The 40 clinical hours are in person, and a lab setting is allowed only when no qualified clinical site is within 20 miles or during a declared disaster under 556.3(e).

HHSC already has a free online course. Why build one?

The CBT is free and self-paced, and a NATCEP must accept its certificate. Your own virtual classroom means your instructors teach the 60 hours on your schedule. The platform handles both paths, so CBT completers and your own trainees land in the same clinical records.

What records does HHSC expect from an online NATCEP?

The 556.3(z) set for every session, online or in person, available to HHSC at any reasonable time, plus the physical address where records are kept on your application. The platform keeps them in one place and exports them.

Can a nursing facility charge its aides for training?

Not if the aide is employed by, or has an offer from, a facility on the day training begins. 556.3(aa) bars charging for any portion of the NATCEP, textbooks and materials included.

What are the terms?

A flat fee per course, final payment due when HHSC approves the program, no per-student fees, and you own the platform and the code. Monthly upkeep for hosting and rule changes is optional. We are building one right now for a state-approved online school in Virginia, in English and Spanish, on the same terms.

Price your HHSC course

Tell us the course and how you teach it now. You get a flat price back by email, and a list of what the application will ask about the platform.

Or email [email protected]

Sources

Read from the sources above on October 17, 2026. Rules change, so confirm the current text with HHSC before you apply. This page is not legal advice.

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