Medical Nutrition Therapy Act of 2026

This legislation aims to significantly expand the availability of medical nutrition therapy (MNT) services under the Medicare program. Currently, Medicare Part B only covers MNT for beneficiaries with diabetes or renal disease, despite its proven effectiveness and medical necessity for a wider range of chronic conditions. The bill seeks to address this gap by broadening the scope of covered conditions and the types of healthcare professionals who can refer patients for these services. Specifically, the bill amends the Social Security Act to include a comprehensive list of additional conditions eligible for MNT, such as prediabetes, obesity, hypertension, dyslipidemia, malnutrition, eating disorders, cancer, gastrointestinal diseases, HIV/AIDS, and cardiovascular disease . It also expands the list of practitioners who can refer patients for MNT to include physician assistants, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, and clinical psychologists for eating disorders. These changes will apply to services furnished in years beginning two years after the bill's enactment, aiming to improve health outcomes for a larger population of Medicare beneficiaries.