Take Action Now!

Updated April 23, 2024

MAND’s Day on the Hill – Highlighting importance of access to telehealth MNT

Please help MAND keep up the momentum from Day on the Hill! 

MAND's bills calling for reimbursement parity for telehalth MNT have moved forward in the legislative process. Now is the time to ask legislatos for their continued support.  

Follow the steps below to contact your state legislators (one senator and one representative) to ask them to support our telehealth MNT bills. 

1. Look up your state legislators: https://malegislature.gov/Search/FindMyLegislator 

2. Use the email script below and personalize as needed to send two emails, one to your state senator and one to your state representative:

Dear Senator __________ (or Dear Representative __________)

As a constituent and registered dietitian, I am writing to ask you to support continued access to the important work done by dietitians across Massachusetts.

• Medical nutrition therapy, or MNT, provided by dietitians addresses acute and chronic conditions, including many preventable conditions such as diabetes, which account for more than one quarter of U.S. health care dollars.
• MNT is part of the recommended treatment for diabetes, which costs MA an estimated $7.6 billion annually, and eating disorders, which will affect 1 in 9 MA residents in their lifetime.
• MNT is cost-effective and science-based, and reimbursed by Medicare, MassHealth and private insurers.
• Please support continued access to MNT provided by dietitians by signing on to cosponsor An Act relative to telehealth parity for nutrition counseling (S.618/H.1073) if you have not yet done so.

Attached is information on the work of dietitians, MNT and bills supporting access to telehealth MNT. I have included my contact information. I would be happy to provide additional information and answer any questions you might have.

Thank you very much for your consideration of these bills.

Sincerely,

Name, credentials

Home address: street, town, MA, zip code + 4

Contact telephone #

Email address

3. Attach this invitation to the email before sending: Day on the Hill 2024

Academy Action Alerts – Contact your members of Congress

The Academy has important new action alerts. Please take action now! 

• Support the Medical Nutrition Therapy Act  

• Support the Treat and Reduce Obesity Act

To take action on all current action alerts, log into your Academy account and visit the Action Center at https://www.eatrightpro.org/advocacy/take-action/action-alertsor  visit the public action alert link at https://www.votervoice.net/EATRIGHT/1/home. 

Want to learn more about a particular policy issue?

Join an Academy Affinity Group! Connect with fellow members on top policy priorities and learn how to get involved. Register for monthly meetings and join the COI for each affinity group: https://www.eatrightpro.org/advocacy/take-action/grassroots-resources/join-the-academy-affinity-groups

MNT Expansion - First Tuesday of every month from 3:30-4:30 pm ET

Nutrition Security - First Wednesday of every month from 4:00-5:00 pm ET

Licensure Initiatives – Second Tuesday of every month from 3:00-4:00 pm ET

Payment and Reimbursement - Fourth Tuesday of every month from 2:00-3:00 pm ET

Want to help MAND contact and connect with our state and federal legislators?

Sign up to be part of MAND’s Grassroots Network!

To help MAND’s Public Policy Panel communicate effectively and advocate successfully for food and nutrition issues important to our profession, we maintain a list of members who would like to be more actively involved with public policy activities.

This “Grassroots Network” of MAND members from across the state is critical to advancing public policies supported by MAND and the Academy. Helping out can be as simple as sending an email or a social media message, as this helps to create and grow relationships with elected officials.

Each registered voter is a constituent of two U.S. senators and one U.S. representative as well as one state senator and one state representative. Our elected officials appreciate hearing directly from their constituents, learning about issues important to them. It is when we educate them on nutrition-related issues and directly ask for their support of a bill or policy item that we can begin to see success in policy areas important to us and our fellow nutrition and dietetics practitioners.

What can you do to get involved and join the Grassroots Network?

Visit https://www.sec.state.ma.us/wheredoivotema/bal/myelectioninfo.aspxand enter your home address to see a complete listing of your members of Congress, members of the state legislature and other local offices. Then email Sarah Conca, MAND’s Director of Public Policy at sconca@live.comwith the following information:

• Your full name, credentials, home address, ZIP code + 4

• Preferred email and telephone number

• Name of your U.S. representative, MA senator and MA representative.