{"database": "openregs", "table": "congressional_record", "rows": [["CREC-2026-02-26-pt1-PgS709", "2026-02-26", 119, 2, null, null, "STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS", "SENATE", "SENATE", "SSTATEMENTS", "S709", "S709", "[{\"name\": \"Susan M. Collins\", \"role\": \"speaking\"}]", "[{\"congress\": \"119\", \"type\": \"S\", \"number\": \"3934\"}]", "172 Cong. Rec. S709", "Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026)\n\n[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026)]\n[Senate]\n[Page S709]\nFrom the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]\n\n          STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS\n\n                                 ______\n\n      By Ms. COLLINS (for herself and Mr. Peters):\n  S. 3934. A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to\nexpand the availability of medical nutrition therapy services under the\nMedicare program; to the Committee on Finance.\n  Ms. COLLINS. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the Medical\nNutrition Therapy Act of 2026, along with my colleague from Michigan\nSenator Peters. Our bill will expand Medicare beneficiaries' access to\nmedical nutrition therapy, or MNT, which is a cost-effective component\nof treatment for obesity, diabetes, hypertension, and other chronic\nconditions. Increasing access to MNT should be part of the strategy to\nimprove disease management and prevention for America's seniors. The\nMedical Nutrition Therapy Act would make two important changes to\nsupport patients, improve health outcomes, and reduce unnecessary\nhealthcare costs.\n  First, the bill would expand Medicare Part B coverage of outpatient\nmedical nutrition therapy services to several currently uncovered\ndiseases or conditions, including prediabetes, obesity, high blood\npressure, high cholesterol, malnutrition, eating disorders, cancer,\nHIV/AIDS, gastrointestinal diseases including celiac disease, and\ncardiovascular disease. Currently, Medicare Part B only covers\noutpatient MNT for diabetes, renal disease, and post-kidney transplant.\n  Second, the bill would allow more types of providers--including nurse\npractitioners, physician assistants, clinical nurse specialists, and\npsychologists--to refer patients to MNT. Right now, only physicians may\nrefer patients to dieticians for medical nutrition therapy. Expanding\nthe types of providers who make these referrals would be especially\nsignificant for patients in a rural State like Maine where an NP or PA\nmay be one's trusted primary care provider.\n  MNT counseling is provided by registered dietitian nutritionists,\nRDNs, as part of a collaborative healthcare team. It is evidence-based\nand has been proven to positively affect weight, blood pressure, blood\nlipids, and blood sugar control. Nutritional counseling by RDNs is\nrecommended by the National Lipid Association to promote long-term\nadherence to an individualized, heart-healthy diet. Through MST,\nindividuals benefit from in-depth, individualized nutrition\nassessments. Followup visits help reinforce important behavior and\nlifestyle changes and increase compliance.\n  Seniors deserve improved access to this cost-effective medical\ntreatment, but many older adults are missing out under the current\nMedicare policy. I heard from a dietitian in rural Washington County,\nME, who is the only part-time dietitian in the county and works at a\nfederally qualified health center, FQHC. One of her patients is an\nelderly man with severe tooth decay requiring a modified personalized\nmeal plan. He lost 40 pounds in 1 year despite being cleared for any\ngastrointestinal or other underlying medical condition that could have\ncaused this extreme weight loss. He became clinically malnourished.\nFinally, his primary care provider referred him to the dietitian at the\nFQHC for medical nutrition therapy with a diagnosis of failure to\nthrive.\n  Because this patient, however, did not have a diagnosis of diabetes\nor renal disease, the FQHC at which he received treatment will not\nreceive Medicare reimbursement for the three 60-minute medical\nnutrition therapy sessions that the dietitian provided. At his third\nand final session, the patient shared that this dietitian was the most\nhelpful provider with whom he had ever met. He is no longer afraid of\neating and has more good days enjoying meals with family and friends.\n  Another patient from Maine, who is a Medicare beneficiary, was\ntreated for severe obesity with gastric bypass surgery. This patient\nwas unable to afford out of pocket costs to receive post-operative\nmedical nutrition therapy. He struggled with post-operative diet\nadvancement, which led to hospitalization for severe dehydration and\nfailure to thrive within the first 3 months after surgery. One year\nafter surgery, this patient had severe nutritional anemia requiring\niron infusion and monthly vitamin B-12 injections. This tragic\nsituation could have been prevented if the MNT he needed had been\ncovered by Medicare. Early treatment with MNT can prevent serious\nhealth complications and chronic conditions, particularly in older\nadults.\n  In addition to the human cost, there is a financial one: the impact\non the Medicare Program. This should not come as a surprise since the\nhealth and economic effects of chronic diseases are staggering.\nAccording to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 90\npercent of the $4.9 trillion that the United States spends annually on\nhealthcare goes to the treatment of people with chronic diseases and\nmental health conditions. Preventing chronic diseases, or managing\nsymptoms when prevention is not possible is an effective way to reduce\nthese costs. This is particularly important for the Medicare Program as\nmore than two-thirds of seniors on Medicare live with multiple chronic\nconditions. As one registered dietitian nutritionist in Maine told me,\n``We all know a dollar spent on prevention saves many health care\ndollars in the long run and is the right thing to do for our seniors at\na time when they have limited budgets.''\n  The Medical Nutrition Therapy Act of 2025 is supported by the Academy\nof Nutrition and Dietetics, the American Diabetes Association, the\nEndocrine Society, and UsAgainstAlzheimer's. I urge my colleagues to\nsupport this important legislation to improve access to cost-effective\nmedical treatment for Medicare patients with chronic diseases.\n\n                          ____________________"]], "columns": ["granule_id", "date", "congress", "session", "volume", "issue", "title", "chamber", "granule_class", "sub_granule_class", "page_start", "page_end", "speakers", "bills", "citation", "full_text"], "primary_keys": ["granule_id"], "primary_key_values": ["CREC-2026-02-26-pt1-PgS709"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 11.662454926408827, "source": "Federal Register API & Regulations.gov API", "source_url": "https://www.federalregister.gov/developers/api/v1", "license": "Public Domain (U.S. Government data)", "license_url": "https://www.regulations.gov/faq"}