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General Assembly Raised Bill No. 6857
January Session, 2023
LCO No. 5125
Referred to Committee on HUMAN SERVICES
Introduced by:
(HS)
AN ACT IMPLEMENTING THE RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE FOOD
AS MEDICINE WORKING GROUP.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. (NEW) (Effective from passage) (a) As used in this section and 1
section 2 of this act, (1) "certified dietitian-nutritionist" means a dietitian-2
nutritionist certified pursuant to section 20-206n of the general statutes, 3
(2) "certain health conditions" means conditions including, but not 4
limited to, prediabetes, gestational diabetes and types 1 and 2 diabetes, 5
heart disease, including hypertension, hypercholesterol, dyslipidemia 6
and congestive heart failure, food allergies, celiac disease, chronic 7
obstructive pulmonary disease, renal disease and obesity, (3) "health 8
care provider" means a physician, physician's assistant, advanced 9
practice registered nurse, certified dietitian-nutritionist or certified 10
diabetes educator, and (4) "produce prescription" means a prescription 11
for fruits and vegetables without added salt, sugar or fat given to a 12
Medicaid enrollee with certain health conditions by a health care 13
provider. 14
(b) The Commissioner of Social Services shall apply for a Medicaid 15 Raised Bill No. 6857
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waiver under Section 1115 of the Social Security Act for a three-year 16
pilot program to provide Medicaid coverage for produce prescriptions 17
for a Medicaid enrollee with certain health conditions. The 18
commissioner may provide such enrollee with vouchers or an electronic 19
debit card restricted to purchases of prescribed produce. 20
(c) Not later than January 15, 2024, January 15, 2025, and January 15, 21
2026, the commissioner shall file reports, in accordance with the 22
provisions of section 11-4a of the general statutes, with the joint 23
standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of 24
matters relating to human services on (1) the number of Medicaid 25
enrollees who have received produce prescriptions, (2) data regarding 26
the effect produce prescriptions have on their health, including, but not 27
limited to, indicators such as blood sugar levels, blood pressure and 28
serum lipids, (3) the effect on ranges of food insecurity, as measured by 29
the United States Department of Agriculture, and (4) the cost to the state 30
to provide Medicaid reimbursement for such prescriptions compared to 31
any savings generated by improved health outcomes for such enrollees. 32
The commissioner shall share aggregate data on food insecurity among 33
pilot program participants with organizations that track data on food 34
insecurity and connect food insecure persons with nutritional 35
assistance. 36
Sec. 2. (Effective from passage) (a) As used in this section, (1) "medically 37
tailored meals" means a meal plan consisting of five to twenty-one meals 38
per week tailored by a certified dietitian-nutritionist, or other qualified 39
nutrition professional as determined by the Commissioner of Social 40
Services, to help treat certain health conditions of Medicaid enrollees, 41
and (2) "medically tailored food" means partially prepared or 42
nonprepared food items, or both, sufficient to prepare not more than 43
fourteen meals per week selected by a certified dietitian-nutritionist, or 44
other qualified nutrition professional as determined by the 45
commissioner, as part of a treatment plan for a Medicaid enrollee with 46
certain health conditions. 47
(b) The Commissioner of Social Services shall convene a working 48 Raised Bill No. 6857
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group not later than August 1, 2023, to develop recommendations to 49
improve health outcomes for Medicaid enrollees with certain health 50
conditions by treating food as medicine. The working group's study 51
shall include, but not be limited to, best practices for integrating 52
medically tailored meals and medically tailored food for Medicaid 53
enrollees with certain health conditions into the state's medical 54
assistance program. 55
(c) The working group shall consist of (1) the Commissioner of Social 56
Services, or the commissioner's designee; (2) the Commissioner of 57
Agriculture, or the commissioner's designee; (3) a representative of the 58
elderly nutrition program administered by the Department of Aging 59
and Disability Services, appointed by the Commissioner of Aging and 60
Disability Services; (4) a certified dietitian-nutritionist with experience 61
in planning medically tailored meals or medically tailored foods for 62
persons with certain health conditions, appointed by the Commissioner 63
of Social Services; (5) an academic professional, who has researched the 64
link between nutrition and certain health conditions, appointed by the 65
Commissioner of Social Services; (6) two Medicaid enrollees with 66
certain health conditions, appointed by the Commissioner of Social 67
Services; (7) one person appointed by the House chairperson of the joint 68
standing committee of the General Assembly having cognizance of 69
matters relating to human services; and (8) one person appointed by the 70
Senate chairperson of the joint standing committee of the General 71
Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to human services. 72
(d) The chairpersons of the working group shall be chosen by 73
members of the working group. The working group shall meet not less 74
than monthly and shall provide recommendations to the Commissioner 75
of Social Services not later than January 1, 2024. The working group shall 76
terminate on the date that it submits such report or January 1, 2024, 77
whichever is later. 78
Sec. 3. Section 17b-28e of the general statutes is amended by adding 79
subsection (f) as follows (Effective from passage): 80 Raised Bill No. 6857
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(NEW) (f) Not later than October 1, 2023, the Commissioner of Social 81
Services shall amend the Medicaid state plan to add reimbursement for 82
medical nutrition therapy provided by a dietitian-nutritionist certified 83
pursuant to section 20-206n to a Medicaid enrollee with certain health 84
conditions. For purposes of this subsection, "certain health conditions" 85
has the same meaning as provided in section 1 of this act and "medical 86
nutrition therapy" means an evidence-based, individualized nutrition 87
plan designed to help treat certain health conditions. 88
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 from passage New section
Sec. 2 from passage New section
Sec. 3 from passage 17b-28e(f)
Statement of Purpose:
To establish (1) a pilot program to provide Medicaid funding for
produce prescriptions for Medicaid enrollees with certain health
conditions, (2) a working group to develop additional
recommendations, including for providing medically tailored meals for
such persons, and (3) Medicaid reimbursement for certified dietitian-
nutritionists who provide medical nutrition therapy.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except
that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not
underlined.]