American Dietetic Association - Lobbying Efforts and Competitive Protections

Lobbying Efforts and Competitive Protections

To help better communications with the US government, the AND has offices in Washington, DC. They also operate their own political action committee, the AND Political Action Committee. The AND spent $5.8 million lobbying at the state and national level from 2000-2010.

A 1985 report noted the AND has supported licensing for dispensing nutritional advice. In addition to supporting legislation regulating the professional nutrition field in states like Colorado, Wyoming, Hawaii, New Jersey and New York, the AND has also applied for patents for its certification titles such as: “Certified Nutrition Coach,” “Certified Nutrition Professional,” “Registered Nutrition Professional,” and “Certified Nutrition Educator.” The AND states that by regulating who can provide nutritional counseling, they can protect their registered members and the public from unregulated advice or possibly inaccurate advice from less qualified dietary practitioners such as chiropractors, yoga instructors, homeopaths, and personal trainers. The AND’s support of this legislation has generated strong opposition from alternative health practitioners and libertarian groups, who state that "highly restrictive bills could create a monopoly for one school of traditional nutrition thought" and that the primary intent of the bill is "not to protect the public, but to give clout and recognition to a single segment of dietitians, increasing their chances of obtaining reimbursement from insurance companies."