To check if your health insurance covers outpatient nutrition counseling, call the 800 number on your insurance card. Coverage for nutrition counseling changes frequently, so we are unable to provide a list of health insurance companies that cover nutrition counseling.
Important info:
- We bill under the BWH Facility National Provider Identification (NPI) number 1790717650, not the dietitian's NPI. If BWH is within your payer’s network of facilities for care, then all of our dietitians are covered. The CPT code is 97802 “Initial Assessment for Medical Nutrition Therapy.”
- We require an Mass General Brigham (MGB)-affiliated provider to enter a referral in our EPIC system to BWH NUTRITION. At this time, we are unable to see patients who are not followed by an MGB provider.
- Check if you have a deductible that must be paid before nutrition counseling benefits are covered.
- If you have an HMO plan, your insurance may require a prior authorization. Outpatient nutrition is supported by the Patient Service Center (PSC). If a patient requires an insurance authorization for a visit, PSC will contact the MGB primary care physician to obtain it.
- If you have Medicare, please note that Medicare only covers nutrition counseling for individuals who are diagnosed with type 1 or type 2 diabetes or chronic kidney disease.
Questions for your insurance company:
- Does my plan cover outpatient nutrition counseling? If yes, how many sessions are allowed per year?
- Does my plan cover virtual visits (e.g., Zoom, Telephone)?
- What is my co-pay amount for outpatient nutrition counseling? Note: nutrition counseling is sometimes considered a “specialist.”
