Where Can I Find Virtual Nutrition Counseling Covered by Insurance?

Virtual consultations are typically more affordable than face-to-face appointments. However, you want to use an in-network provider to minimize your costs further.

Learn where to find in-network nutrition professionals your health insurer covers and how to determine the right specialist to talk to based on your unique needs.

How to Find Virtual Nutrition Counseling Covered by Insurance

The best place to find virtual nutrition counseling covered by your health plan is your insurance carrier. You may be uncertain about the breadth of your insurer's network if you belong to the 25% of working Americans who are ill-informed of their company benefits.

Check your health insurance provider's site or reach out by phone or email to get this information and simplify your search. Your insurance provider can point you to where to look, allowing you to choose from the health professionals in contract with your insurer immediately and compare prenegotiated rates.

Sticking with your employer-sponsored insurance carrier's network can limit your care options. Consider buying a personal health plan to access more nutrition professionals who can help you improve your diet. An insurance agent can help you go over the different policies on the market.

Top 4 Places Where You Can Find Providers of Virtual Nutrition Counseling That Accept Insurance

These four are the best places where you can find online nutrition counseling providers that accept insurance.

1. Doherty Nutrition

Doherty Nutrition offers one-on-one video nutrition counseling services via SimplePractice. It values evidence-based procedures, prioritizes weight-inclusive care and focuses on intuitive eating guidelines to help you understand your body's hunger and fullness prompts.

This private practice specializes in these 13 areas:

• Diabetes and insulin resistance
• Disordered eating and eating disorders
• Faith-based counseling
• Gastrointestinal health
• General health and wellness
• LGBTQIA+ affirming care
• Mindful and intuitive eating
• Oncology
• Pediatric nutrition
• Plant-based eating
• Sports nutrition
• Weight management
• Women's health and hormonal imbalances

Doherty Nutrition employs more than 20 registered dietitians who can provide telehealth services in 15 states. Some of the dietitians may have licensure to counsel individuals in other jurisdictions. Contact the company to determine whether it has a specialist authorized to provide nutritional advice in your location.

Doherty Nutrition accepts health plans from most major insurers, including:

• Aetna
• Ambetter
• Anthem
• Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas
• Cigna
• Humana
• Medicare
• Molina
• Oscar
• UnitedHealthcare

Coverage varies by how your health insurance carrier categorizes nutrition counseling. You will likely pay nothing if your insurer considers it a preventive service. However, you may have some financial responsibility in the form of a deductible, co-payment or coinsurance if it falls under the medical service category.

Review your health plan to see which benefit category nutrition counseling is under. Note your policy's limitations and be aware of coverage restrictions regarding appointment mode or frequency. Your health insurance may also specify whether you need a referral or authorization from your primary health provider first before your insurer covers nutrition counseling.

Doherty Nutrition provides a superbill to help you save on your care if it is out of your insurance company's network. You can use this document to file a claim for reimbursement.

This practice also offers group nutrition classes, personalized meal planning, ready-to-use meal plans and DIY nutrition courses.

Highlights

20+ registered dietitians

13 counseling specialties

Licensed to offer virtual nutrition counseling in 15 states

In-network for most major health insurance companies

2. Culina Health

Culina Health is a telehealth-only nutrition counseling service provider. It has an extensive network of registered dietitians licensed to offer professional advice anywhere in the United States.

This company's proprietary care model - the Culina Health Method^™ - emphasizes evidence-based coaching, attentiveness and inclusiveness. This telehealth vendor's roster of dietitians can serve patients in 14 languages, catering to the distinct needs of the nation's increasingly diverse population with empathy and cultural sensitivity.

Culina Health tailors its care plans for patients. Its nutritional interventions are useful for fostering healthy eating habits and managing acute and chronic medical conditions. Its dietitians specialize in:

• Autoimmune disease and inflammation
• Cancer care nutrition
• Diabetes, prediabetes and gestational diabetes
• Eating disorders
• Exercise and sports nutrition
• Gastrointestinal and gut health
• General healthy eating and wellness
• Heart and cardiovascular health
• Hormone health
• Pediatric and family nutrition
• Pregnancy and postpartum nutrition
• Sustainable weight loss

Most Culina Health patients can achieve above-industry-average health outcomes with weekly or biweekly sessions within one to three months of care. This care timeline is within the limits of most health insurance plans.

Culina Health is in-network for most major insurers and nonprofit health services companies, including:

• Aetna
• AmeriHealth
• Anthem
• Blue Cross Blue Shield - all states
• CareFirst
• Cigna
• EmblemHealth
• Harvard Pilgrim Health Care
• Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey
• Medicare in Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York
• Oxford Health Plans
• UMR
• UnitedHealthcare

Culina Health will verify your insurance coverage after matching you with a registered dietitian licensed in your state. You can continue using the Culina Health app for ongoing nutrition support after your Zoom counseling session.

The company also offers virtual group nutrition sessions and a monthly membership program - an out-of-pocket option if you cannot or wish not to use insurance.

Highlights

Nationwide network of registered dietitians

12 counseling specialties

14 languages supported

In-network with most major health plans and insurance policies

3. Zaya Care

Zaya Care is a holistic care platform where you can find previously out-of-network virtual nutrition counseling providers covered by your insurance plan. This credentialing entity vets care providers on behalf of its health insurance partners, which include:

• Aetna
• Anthem NY
• Anthem BlueCross BlueShield
• Centivo
• Cigna
• Oscar
• Oxford Freedom
• UnitedHealthcare

The company aims to primarily help small out-of-network practitioners access in-network patients. It also welcomes care providers already credentialed with an insurer.

Zaya's network consists of hundreds of private practices - including those of registered dietitians, holistic nutritionists, nutrition coaches and other similar professions. The platform gives you access to dozens of independent nutrition counselors across the nation in one place.

The number of practices within the Zaya platform grows by the day. Browse through its updated list of providers to determine which practitioners can legally help you with your nutritional needs in your state. This process is seamless, thanks to the platform's intuitive interface.

The platform will populate the screen with all available nutrition care providers based on jurisdiction, insurance, visit, specialty, and language filters. Check profiles to learn more about a care provider's credentials, specializations and other qualifications, and make informed decisions before booking Zoom video calls.

Highlights

Independent nutrition care providers licensed to practice in different states

Dozens of registered dietitians with various specialties

In-network for at least eight insurance companies

Intuitive provider search and booking platform

Questions to Ask Yourself Before Choosing a Virtual Nutrition Counseling Service

Comparing virtual nutrition service providers can be overwhelming. They may all seem the same on paper, so getting these important questions answered can help you make an informed decision.

What Are the Different Types of Nutrition Providers?

The most common professionals offering nutrition counseling are registered dietitians, nutritionists and nutritional coaches. Registered dietitians have the strongest credentials among all of them.

Registered dietitians have a professional title used by people practicing dietetics - the science of how nutrition affects human health. A person must complete a master's degree in dietetics, food and nutrition, or another related field - as well as a dietetic internship - to earn this designation from the Commission on Dietetic Registration.

A registered dietitian must pursue continuing professional education to maintain this professional title. Some states require registered dietitians to obtain a license to practice within their jurisdictions.

A nutritionist is a person whose work involves educating people about healthy eating habits. Someone can call themselves a nutritionist because it is their occupation. Being a nutritionist requires less formal qualifications compared to being a registered dietitian.

Nutritional coaches are health and fitness experts specializing in helping people improve their well-being by making positive, lasting lifestyle changes. Some states mandate nutritional coaches to obtain a certification before providing nutrition education and offering advice.

What Do You Need to Know About Nutrition?

Your motivation for seeking nutrition counseling dictates the type of nutrition provider you need.

Registered dietitians, nutritionists and nutritional coaches can advance your understanding of how foods impact your body. Any of these professionals can help you set health goals, offer recommendations to overcome your challenges and keep you motivated until you hit your targets.

Do You Need Someone to Interpret Your Lab Results?

Registered dietitians are the only nutrition professionals who should interpret your laboratory results and offer you expert advice based on what your lab test checks reveal about your health. Being a nutritionist or nutrition coach alone does not qualify someone to perform this task.

What Chronic Conditions Do You Have?

Registered dietitians have undergone rigorous training to help you manage specific chronic medical conditions through proper nutrition. Each has counseling specialties, so work with a credentialed dietitian who is an expert in your condition to receive appropriate guidance and care.

Do You Need a Personalized Nutrition Plan?

Registered dietitians can competently review your general health and medical history. Their findings allow them to assess your nutritional needs and map out a personalized meal plan over a specified time frame to achieve your health goals.

Nutritionists may lack the credentials to provide proper guidance on food choices, and prescribing meal plans is generally outside the purview of certified nutritional coaches.

Do You Need Expert Supplement Recommendations?

Registered dietitians can recommend dietary supplements to satisfy your daily requirements of essential nutrients and maintain your overall health. These health care professionals know that dietary supplements are not food substitutes. They will likely recommend that you prioritize consuming the variety of food items available to you over taking supplements.

Uncredentialed nutritionists and nutritional coaches are unqualified to provide supplement recommendations. Registered dietitians will be familiar with the risks associated with dietary supplements and able to counsel you on safe practices.

Find Insurance-Covered Virtual Nutrition Counseling Providers to Receive the Best Care

Doherty Nutrition, Culina Health, Nourish and Zaya can all connect you to credentialed nutritionists trained to deliver high-quality care and attention, but each provider has distinct strengths. Review what each brings to the table more deeply to determine the best fit for you.

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