BILL NUMBER: S5665

SPONSOR: RIVERA
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the education law, in relation to the
certification of dietitians and nutritionists

 
PURPOSE:

To amend the Education Law to allow certified dietitians and nutrition-
ists to order therapeutic diets.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section one of the bill authorizes that a certified dietitian or certi-
fied nutritionist may prescribe, order, write, review, evaluate, monitor
and manage therapeutic diets, including enteral and parenteral nutri-
tion, in a hospital or any other facility as defined in section 2800 of
the public health law.

Section two of the bill establishes the effective date.

              

 
JUSTIFICATION:

The Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) issued in the Feder-
al Register Volume 79, Number 91, a new rule in 2014 that permits hospi-
tals to allow qualified dietitians and nutritionists to order therapeu-
tic diets. According to the CMS rules dietitians and nutritionists are
"the professionals who are best qualified to assess a patient's nutri-
tional status and to design and implement a nutritional treatment plan
in consultation with the patient's interdisciplinary care team." In
addition, the CMS rules state that the qualified dietitian or nutrition-
ist "must be viewed as an integral member of the hospital interdiscipli-
nary care team, one who as the team's clinical nutrition expert is
responsible for a patient's nutritional diagnosis and treatment in light
of a patient's medical diagnosis." The CMS rule further states that "we
consider all patient diets to be therapeutic in nature, regardless of
the modality used to support the nutritional needs of the patient and
that the term would most certainly include parenteral and enteral nutri-
tion support".

The current scope of practice for certified dietitians and certified
nutritionists does not specifically allow for the ordering of therapeu-
tic diets. Language is needed to allow New York State to deliver nutri-
tion care via therapeutic diets through recognized dietetic and nutri-
tion professionals in a manner deemed as being appropriate and
efficient. This legislation will clarify that dietetic and nutrition
professionals may order therapeutic diets, providing patients with
better health care and ensuring that hospitals function more efficient-
ly.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill.

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

To be determined.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect 180 days after it shall have become a law.