As of January 1, 2011, Medicare has dropped the requirement that a beneficiary pay 20% of the cost of “Medical Nutrition Therapy” (or MNT). MNT covers counseling by a registered dietitian or nutrition professional and is for individuals with chronic kidney disease or diabetes who are not on dialysis. (Dialysis patients have access to Medicare-covered nutrition counseling through their dialysis provider.) Kidney transplant recipients are eligible for MNT coverage within 36 months after their transplant. In order to qualify for Medicare payment, the beneficiary must be referred to the registered dietitian or nutrition professional for MNT by a physician.
The MNT benefit was created by Congress in a law passed at the end of 2000 and has been available since January 2002. It provides 3 hours of nutrition counseling, in 15 minute increments, during the year in which the beneficiary first receives MNT and 2 hours per year in subsequent years. A physician may document the need for additional counseling time. Chronic kidney disease is defined as reduced kidney function that is documented by glomerular filtration rate. Diabetes is documented by fasting blood sugar level, post-glucose challenge level, or random glucose test. If a beneficiary has both diabetes and chronic kidney disease, he/she may only receive the number of counseling hours described above.