Coverage for Eating Disorders is Required by Law
The Mental Health Parity & Addiction Equity Act - January 2022
If your insurance covers nutrition counseling for diabetes, they must cover for an eating disorder too!
Eating Disorders deserve treatment.
The law agrees.
After initially receiving denials for services, many clients at Sunrise Nutrition have advocated for themselves, and therefore, for clients after them, for their insurance company to follow current laws for coverage.
If your services have been denied by insurance, you are responsible for paying cash for services. Sunrise Nutrition collects cash payments upon denial because we have to keep our small business afloat! As indicated on our insurance page, if insurance doesn’t cover, clients are responsible for payments.
However! …
Many of our clients have received reimbursement for these sessions after advocating for themselves.
While clients pay us initially, we provide info to begin complaint process lower on this page. Advocating for yourself helps to require insurances to abide by the law! Remember, YOU are the customer and you have rights!
In January of 2022, the Mental Health Parity & Addiction Equity Act was put into place, requiring nutrition counseling for eating disorders to be covered. (Please Note: It was the 2022 law that included nutrition counseling for eating disorders. This might be an important detail when discussing with your insurance. Other Mental Health Parity laws do not include eating disorders.)
First, is your insurance company in the wrong?
Call them and ask how they cover nutrition counseling, CPT codes 97802 and 97803 for a diagnosis of diabetes. If they say they cover, ask for a reference number for the call.
If they are denying your services for an eating disorder, but they cover for diabetes, know they are in the wrong and the law requires they cover services for an eating disorder in the same way!
You will need to advocate for yourself. To learn more, here is a fact sheet to use as a resource:
Questions? Call, text or email us today. 316.217.2984
With locations in Wichita and Hesston, we’re an easy drive from Newton, McPherson, Wichita, Salina, & other Kansas locations!
We also provide care via our telehealth services. Telemedicine is a convenient way to make peace with food & all our providers offer virtual nutrition counseling for binge eating and emotional eating.