No. SB 1154
Filed under Healthcare.
Dietetics and Nutrition Practice Act; Prohibiting persons from engaging in specified conduct without holding the applicable license; revising exemptions from licensure requirements; revising the membership of the Dietetics and Nutrition Practice Council; revising licensure requirements for dietitians and nutritionists; requiring that certain persons licensed as a dietitian/nutritionist or a nutrition counselor as of a specified date be issued a license to practice as a dietitian or nutritionist, as applicable, without meeting additional requirements, provided certain conditions are met, etc.
Plain English Summary
AI-GENERATEDFlorida's single dietitian/nutritionist license splits into two: a dietitian license covering every patient, including complex medical conditions, and a narrower nutritionist license limited to noncomplex conditions in low-acuity outpatient settings.
Everyone currently licensed as a dietitian/nutritionist or nutrition counselor is automatically reclassified on July 1, 2026, with no new exam or coursework required. Which license they land in depends on whether they hold the registered-dietitian credential.
New applicants face stricter requirements: a master's or doctoral degree, 1,000 hours of supervised practice, and a national exam before Florida issues either license.
The old duty to get a physician's or chiropractor's order before starting a dietary plan for an actively treated patient, and to refer patients back to them, is deleted.
AIReplaces the single dietitian/nutritionist license with two: a dietitian license authorizing care for any condition, including complex disease states, and a nutritionist license confined to noncomplex conditions in low-acuity outpatient settings.
AIA dietitian/nutritionist who holds the registered-dietitian credential becomes a licensed dietitian; one who does not becomes a licensed nutritionist. Former nutrition counselors also become licensed nutritionists. None must meet new requirements.
AINew dietitian applicants must hold a master's or doctoral degree from an accredited nutrition and dietetics program, complete 1,000 hours of supervised practice, and pass the national dietetic registration exam.
AIDeletes the requirement that a licensee obtain a physician's or chiropractor's order before implementing a dietary plan for a patient under that provider's active care, and the paired duty to refer such patients back.
AIRemoves the standing exemption that let staff of hospitals, nursing homes, assisted-living facilities, and continuing-care facilities practice without an individual license just by complying with the facility's own dietetic-department rules.
AIExempts an out-of-state dietitian or nutritionist from Florida licensure when treating a Florida patient by telehealth, so long as they are in good standing elsewhere and meet a consultation, temporary-presence, or continuity-of-care condition.
AICurrent law only requires a license for dietetics or nutrition practice done for remuneration; that qualifier is deleted, so unpaid practice can also trigger the licensing requirement.
AISets the licensed seats on the Dietetics and Nutrition Practice Council at three dietitians and one nutritionist, replacing the prior four at-large seats that were appointed in proportion to each discipline's share of licensees.