Virginia insurance law on MNT and nutrition counseling
The short answerVirginia requires individual and group insurers, subscription contracts and HMOs to cover in-person outpatient diabetes self-management training and education, including medical nutrition therapy. It bars annual dollar and durational limits on these benefits.
By Javier Alvarez · Updated · 1 min read
1 row: State insurance law · Virginia. Public policy, not the member's benefits.
Virginia insurance law
Fully insured plans (Va. Code 38.2-3418.10) · Virginia
| 97802 | Not published |
|---|---|
| 97803 | Not published |
| G0270 | Not published |
| G0271 | Not published |
| Where it applies | Individual or group hospital or major medical policies, hospital or medical subscription contracts, and HMO health care plans. Does not apply to short-term travel, accident only, or limited or specified disease policies, or to Medicare and similar government plan coverage. [1] |
| Diagnoses | Insulin-dependent, insulin-using, gestational, and noninsulin-using diabetes. [1] |
| Telehealth POS | Not published: call the payer. |
| Telehealth modifier | Not published: call the payer. |
| Visit limits | No policy-year or calendar-year dollar or durational benefit limitations or maximums for benefits under the section. The statute specifies in-person training and education. [1] |
| Referral and prior auth | Must be prescribed by a health care professional legally authorized to prescribe such items. [1] |
| Who can bill | A certified, registered or licensed health care professional. A managed care plan may require the professional to be in its network if the network has sufficient qualified professionals. Dietitians are not named. [1] |
- Code of Virginia s. 38.2-3418.10 Coverage for diabetes, checked October 30, 2026
What the Virginia law says
- Where it applies. Individual or group hospital or major medical policies, hospital or medical subscription contracts, and HMO health care plans. Does not apply to short-term travel, accident only, or limited or specified disease policies, or to Medicare and similar government plan coverage.
- Diagnoses. Insulin-dependent, insulin-using, gestational, and noninsulin-using diabetes.
- Visit limits. No policy-year or calendar-year dollar or durational benefit limitations or maximums for benefits under the section. The statute specifies in-person training and education.
- Referral and prior auth. Must be prescribed by a health care professional legally authorized to prescribe such items.
- Who can bill. A certified, registered or licensed health care professional. A managed care plan may require the professional to be in its network if the network has sufficient qualified professionals. Dietitians are not named.
What it means for a claim in Virginia
The law sets a floor for the plans it reaches; the plan's own policy and the member's contract still decide the codes, units and referral. On the benefits call, ask whether the plan is fully insured in Virginia, and if a covered service is denied, name the statute by section in the appeal. The sources below link to the statute itself.
Payers with their own row for Virginia: Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield and Virginia Medicaid. The state laws side by side compare Virginia with other states.