Medicare expands coverage for eating disorder nutrition therapy

What it does

This bill expands Medicare coverage to include medical nutrition therapy (counseling and treatment by registered dietitians) for beneficiaries with eating disorders, starting January 1, 2026. Currently, Medicare covers nutrition therapy only for diabetes; this bill adds eating disorders as a covered condition. Eligible Medicare beneficiaries with eating disorders gain access to at least 13 hours of nutrition therapy in the first year (including an initial assessment) and 4 hours annually thereafter, referred by a physician or mental health professional.

Why we flagged it

The bill's sole operative mechanism is to expand an existing Medicare benefit (medical nutrition therapy) to a new patient population (those with eating disorders). It is a straightforward public-health coverage measure with no hidden provisions or narrow beneficiaries.

What the text implies

• The Secretary retains discretion to apply 'other reasonable limitations' beyond the specified 13 hours in year one and 4 hours annually, potentially allowing future restrictions on coverage scope or frequency.
• Definition of eating disorder defers to the DSM-5 (or future editions), meaning coverage scope may shift if diagnostic criteria change without further legislative action.
• Referral requirement (physician or mental health professional) may create access barriers in areas with limited mental health provider networks or where primary-care physicians lack familiarity with eating disorder diagnosis.
• No explicit appropriations or funding mechanism is stated; coverage expansion depends on existing Medicare Part B budget authority and may affect program solvency projections.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Medicare beneficiaries with eating disorders gain access to a clinically necessary treatment service previously unavailable under the program. The bill addresses a serious public health gap: eating disorders have the highest mortality rate among mental illnesses, and the findings document that 1.6–2.1 million Medicare beneficiaries are affected. Nutrition therapy is identified as one of four pillars of evidence-based treatment.

Who stands to gain

• registered dietitians and nutrition professionals (service providers)
• mental health treatment providers (referral sources)
• eating disorder treatment facilities and programs

Named in the bill

Medicare Part B, Social Security Act § 1861, American Psychiatric Association (DSM-5), registered dietitians, eating disorder treatment providers

Where it stands

46 cosponsors: 44 Democrats, 2 Republicans.

• Mar 31, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Mar 31, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means and House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a…”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

3 lobbying clients named this bill on 6 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $1,915,904 in lobbying spend. A filing names 36 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 61% of bills with at least one filing.

Judy Chu, the sponsor, reported $421,000 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• American Academy of Family Physicians — $1,715,904 on 2 filings
• The Kroger Co. — $120,000 on 2 filings
• Clark County Nv (office of the County Manager) — $80,000 on 2 filings

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.