GeorgiaHB 1852025-2026 Regular SessionHouse

Professions and businesses; repeal and reenact Chapter 11A, the Dietetics Practice Act

Sponsored By: Ginny Ehrhart (Republican), Alan Powell (Republican)

Signed by Governor

Regulated IndustriesRegulated Industries and UtilitiesGeneral Bill

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Bill Overview

Analyzed Economic Effects

20 provisions identified: 6 benefits, 1 costs, 13 mixed.

New requirements for Georgia nutritionist licenses

Nutritionist applicants must be at least 18, pay fees, pass background checks, and hold a qualifying master's or doctoral degree. Coursework includes 15 semester hours in clinical or life sciences, including three in anatomy or physiology. Another 15 hours cover nutrition or metabolism, including six in biochemistry. Applicants need 1,000 supervised hours within five years of the degree, including 200 each in assessment, intervention, and monitoring/evaluation. They need the certified nutrition specialist exam, an approved equivalent, or the specified current certification; older exams require 75 continuing-education hours per five-year period.

New requirements for Georgia dietitian licenses

Dietitian applicants must be at least 18, pay application fees, and meet accredited master's or doctoral degree requirements. They need 1,000 supervised practice hours within five years of the degree; limited extensions cover extraordinary circumstances. They must pass the registered-dietitian exam, with 75 continuing-education hours per five-year period when the exam exceeds five years old. Applicants provide fingerprints and pay background-check fees; a national check follows only when no disqualifying state record appears. The board must keep check results private and use them only for its licensing duties.

Dietitian care joins insurance protection rules

Georgia includes licensed dietitians and nutritionists in provider definitions for patient protection, surprise billing, and insurance price disclosure. It also includes them in the medical professional definition used by insurance-information law. These changes do not guarantee insurance coverage, set payment rates, or promise lower household bills.

Nutrition professionals gain recognized care roles

Licensed dietitians and nutritionists are recognized in Georgia's health-share volunteer and volunteer healthcare programs. Georgia-board licensees are excluded from the employee definition in the long-term care background-check program. Licensed dietitians and nutritionists can use genetic data for nutrition counseling without a genetic counselor license. That exception covers nutrition counseling, not other genetic-data services.

Interstate dietitians avoid duplicate continuing education

Dietitians practicing in another state through a compact privilege do not need to meet that state’s continuing education requirements. They must still meet their licensing home state’s continuing education requirements.

Military dietitians can keep licensing home states

Active service members and their spouses can choose a licensing home state for the interstate dietitian compact. They must hold a current dietetics license in good standing in that state. They can keep that choice throughout the service member’s active duty.

Dietitians join pandemic healthcare provider rules

Georgia’s pandemic business safety law includes licensed dietitians and nutritionists in its healthcare provider definition. This applies to those licensed or otherwise authorized to provide healthcare services in Georgia.

Seven states activate the dietitian compact

The compact starts when a seventh state enacts it; these provisions do not establish a calendar start date. Its joint state commission begins on or after activation and administers compact operations through rules, bylaws, and authorized fees. Georgia's executive and judicial branches must enforce and implement the compact. After activation, the compact and commission continue even when withdrawals, defaults, or removals leave fewer than seven member states.

Exceptions preserve wellness and telehealth services

Licensing exceptions cover general wellness education, religious practice, authorized government work, supervised training, and nutrition care within another licensed profession. Support and weight-control services must require no professional judgment and meet supervision or program requirements. General wellness exceptions do not authorize unlicensed medical nutrition therapy, and trainees must use titles showing their status. Out-of-state providers in good standing can use telehealth through qualifying patient relationships, continuity of care, or consultation with a Georgia practitioner. Their temporary physical presence in Georgia cannot exceed 90 days in any 12-month period.

Nutrition care powers and protected titles

Licensed nutritionists can order therapeutic diets taken by mouth, related medical lab tests, and recommend supplements. Medical nutrition therapy is limited to licensed dietitians, licensed nutritionists, and others authorized by the law. Dietitian titles, including dietician and dietitian nutritionist, and the letters LD and LDN are reserved for licensed dietitians. Only licensed nutritionists can use licensed nutritionist or LN; presenting as a nutritionist requires a license or an exemption. Earned, federally trademarked nutrition credentials remain allowed, and violations of the nutritionist title rules are misdemeanors.

Dietitians gain interstate practice with requirements

Georgia joins a compact allowing qualifying dietitians to practice in other member states without separate full licenses. Eligibility requires current Registered Dietitian registration or the specified accredited education, 1,000 supervised hours, recent exam, and continuous-licensure route. Dietitians need an unrestricted home-state license, must notify the commission, pay fees, and meet each destination state's legal-knowledge requirements. Practice privileges expire and renew with the home-state license. Specified discipline or restrictions from nonmember states must be reported to the commission within 30 days.

Interstate dietitians face discipline and costs

Only the home state can discipline its license; another member state can discipline local practice privileges through its due-process laws. A restricted home-state license revokes privileges in all other member states until the restrictions are removed. Dietitians must then meet compact requirements and reapply for those privileges. Home states must treat reported member-state conduct like local conduct and finish pending investigations after a move. A state can recover investigation and case-handling costs after disciplinary action only when its other laws allow recovery.

License options for dietitians and nutritionists

The board can license applicants without an exam using substantially equivalent out-of-state credentials, or registered-dietitian status for dietitian applicants. Dietitians who applied before July 1, 2026, keep licensure by staying in good standing with active or inactive status. After education and supervised practice, applicants can receive one-year provisional licenses that cannot be renewed. Provisional dietitians need a licensed dietitian supervisor; provisional nutritionists need a licensed dietitian or nutritionist supervisor. Regular licenses renew every two years with fees, continuing education, and legal compliance; returning from inactive status requires board-set conditions.

Moving dietitians must transfer home licenses

Dietitians moving between compact states must apply and pay for a new home-state license and notify both states. They must complete required fingerprint-based FBI and other background checks, plus the new state's legal-knowledge requirements. Once the new license starts, the old home-state license becomes a compact practice privilege. Applicants who do not qualify for the compact can face single-state licensing requirements. Moves involving a nonmember state follow that state's single-state license rules.

Georgia board oversees both nutrition professions

Beginning July 1, 2026, Georgia's licensing board continues under a name covering licensed dietitians and licensed nutritionists. Its nine members include six dietitians, one nutritionist, one physician, and one public member. Members must be U.S. citizens and Georgia residents; professional members need active practice and licenses, while the public member has no profession ties. The board grants licenses, sets exam and license fees, regulates advertising and ethics, and administers the interstate compact. The Governor can remove members for specified misconduct or lost qualifications after notice and a chance for a hearing.

Nutrition care supervision and safety penalties

Qualified supervisors must take responsibility for trainee care, document plans, review records, and assign work within the trainee's training. They must provide suitable oversight and arrange another qualified provider when unavailable to help a patient. By majority vote, the board can discipline practitioners for fraud, unsafe care, relevant crimes, unlicensed-practice assistance, or other legal violations. Actions include license denial, restrictions, suspension, revocation, required treatment, and fines up to $500 per violation. Applicants denied for not proving qualifications can request an appearance before the board, even without a prior hearing.

Nutrition professionals enter existing healthcare rules

Georgia's healthcare advertising, signs, and identification rules now name licensed dietitians and licensed nutritionists. The law also names both professions in malpractice affidavit rules and hospital-provider relationship and liability definitions. These changes place the professions within existing disclosure and legal frameworks. They do not set new damages, claim amounts, insurance coverage, or household payments.

States share dietitian records and checks

Member states must share licensing, discipline, and significant investigation information, monitor the shared system, and enforce compact rules. The commission must assign each practice-privilege applicant a unique ID, and states must recognize qualifying privileges. States must establish fingerprint or other biometric state and federal checks for initial applicants within the compact's rule-set timeframe. Eligibility communications cannot include FBI criminal-history information. Shared information must be removed after legal expungement under federal law or the contributing state's law.

Dietitian privileges have state exit safeguards

The interstate licensing compact overrides conflicting state rules, but only where they conflict. The commission can deny state participation when a state constitutional rule materially conflicts with the compact. Ending existing membership must follow the compact’s termination steps. Termination for default requires failure to fix the default, exhaustion of other compliance efforts, and a majority vote of state delegates. A terminated state must honor compact practice privileges for at least six months after notifying its licensees. Voluntary withdrawal requires a repeal law and takes effect 180 days after that law passes. Withdrawing states must notify licensees, honor privileges for at least 180 days after notice, and keep reporting investigations and disciplinary actions from before withdrawal.

Dietitian compact fees and legal safeguards

Member states can charge practice-privilege fees; the commission can charge privilege holders and assess states annually for otherwise unfunded costs. Fee amounts are not stated, and the commission sets the state-assessment formula by rule. Commission rules have legal force, but courts can block conflicts with state practice laws. A majority of member-state legislatures can reject a rule within four years of adoption. Covered commission personnel receive civil-liability protection, defense, and indemnity, except for intentional, willful, or wanton misconduct; practitioner malpractice liability remains.

Sponsors & Cosponsors

Cosponsors

Matt Brass
Republican • Senate

Roll Call Votes

All Roll Calls

Yes: 368 • No: 13

House vote • 3/18/2026

Agree to Senate Substitute

Yes: 155 • No: 8 • Other: 8

Senate vote • 3/12/2026

PASSAGE BY SUBSTITUTE

Yes: 42 • No: 3 • Other: 5

House vote • 3/6/2025

PASSAGE

Yes: 171 • No: 2 • Other: 2

Actions Timeline

House Date Signed by Governor
5/11/2026House
Act 436
5/11/2026
Effective Date
5/11/2026
House Sent to Governor
4/6/2026House
House Agreed Senate Amend or Sub
3/18/2026House
Senate Third Read
3/12/2026Senate
Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute
3/12/2026Senate
Senate Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute
2/6/2026Senate
Senate Taken from Table
1/12/2026Senate
Senate Recommitted
1/12/2026Senate
Senate Tabled
4/2/2025Senate
Senate Read Second Time
3/21/2025Senate
Senate Committee Favorably Reported
3/20/2025Senate
Senate Read and Referred
3/10/2025Senate
House Third Readers
3/6/2025House
House Passed/Adopted By Substitute
3/6/2025House
House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute
3/4/2025House
House Withdrawn, Recommitted
2/27/2025House
House Committee Favorably Reported
2/11/2025House
House Second Readers
2/3/2025House
House First Readers
1/30/2025House
House Hopper
1/29/2025House

Bill Text

HB 185/AP* (v10)
PDF

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