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Coding and Coverage Committee Spring 2006 Report

The ADA Coding and Coverage Committee provides oversight and strategic directives for the development, maintenance and communication of nutrition services codes, while empowering registered dietitians to expand coverage and receive competitive reimbursement for quality nutrition services. It supports Association work to position RD members as the most valued source for food and nutrition services.

The Committee’s recent activities have included the following:

With input from the Coding Survey Methodology Task Force, the Committee work has focused on the development and distribution of the ADA Coding Survey and research project. The survey was sent to a randomly selected group of RDs (n=10,678); approximately 1,170 RD members and non-members completed the survey. Additionally, 480 RDs who were not randomly selected to participate in the study completed the survey. Data analysis is underway.
A face-to-face committee meeting is planned in April to review the survey data and begin work on interpreting the data for future ADA publications including the Journal of the American Dietetic Association.
Committee members will present data from the survey at FNCE 2006 on Sunday, September 17, “Cracking the Code: Billing Potential Beyond Medical Nutrition Therapy.”
Committee liaisons to the American Medical Association (AMA), Jane White, Keith Ayoob and staff Pam Michael, have attended two coding and payment related meetings. They will attend meetings in April and June. Both liaisons are participating on an additional AMA code development committee to create new team conference codes.
Jane White and Keith Ayoob are representing ADA and interacting with nurses and other non-physician practitioners regarding an American Medical Association’s national Scope of Practice Partnership initiative. AMA’s national campaign will serve as a forum for discussing scope of practice issues and to conduct research for gathering information about non-physician practitioners’ training and qualifications.
Committee members Jane White and Michele Chynoweth presented “The Politics of Coverage and Payment” at the March 2006 Public Policy Workshop in Washington, DC. A summary of the presentation is included in the April Medicare MNT Provider newsletter.

For additional information, please contact the Nutrition Services Coverage Team at 800/877-1600 ext. 4747 or PMichael@eatright.org.

Respectfully submitted by:
Jane White PhD RD FADA LDN, Chair
Keith Ayoob EdD RD FADA
Mindy Benedict, MS RD CDE LDN
Charlotte Thiessen MPA RD LMNT
Susan Ramsey MS RD CDE LDN
Robert Howard MS JD RD CDE
Michele Chynoweth RD CDE, Legislative and Public Policy Liaison
Pam Michael, MBA, RD, Director of Nutrition Services Coverage Team- staff partner

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