Similar to the rise of in-network virtual specialty providers highlighted in the recent Brown & Brown blog post Hiding in Plain Sight: The Rise of In-Network Virtual Providers and Clinics, most major health plans now include robust networks of in-network dietitians offering both virtual and in-person care. These providers function just like any other in-network clinician and are:
Covered under the medical plan
Billed through standard claims
Not required to be part of additional vendor contracts
Yet, despite being readily available, RD services remain an underutilized and under-promoted clinical resource within employer health plans. For employers focused on cost containment, population health, and member engagement, this is a missed opportunity hiding in plain sight.
Nutrition is not a “nice-to-have,” it is a foundational lever in managing some of the highest-cost and fastest-growing health conditions in employer populations. Here are five ways in-network RDs can make a positive impact on your workforce’s health outcomes and plan costs.
Registered dietitians play a critical role in managing metabolic health conditions such as diabetes, prediabetes, obesity, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and GLP-1 use. They help individuals with:
Appropriate nutrition during treatment
Sustainable eating habits for weight loss/management
Side effect management and medication discontinuation
Improved long-term outcomes post-treatment
While many hospitals and cancer support programs provide access to on-call oncology nurses, most do not have a direct line to registered dietitians, despite the fact that:
The majority of side effects from cancer treatment (e.g., chemotherapy) impact food intake, such as nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, taste changes, digestive problems, mouth sores, and fatigue.
Without appropriate guidance from an RD, patients may struggle to receive adequate nutrition throughout their treatment.
Lack of proper nutrition guidance can also lead to malnutrition, weight loss, reduced treatment tolerance, weakened immune function, increased fatigue, overall delays in healing and recovery, and higher risk of hospitalization and re-hospitalization.
Research shows promoting access to RDs for cancer patients is critical to treatment success.
Conditions like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), food intolerances, and autoimmune disorders often require specialized dietary interventions. RDs provide evidence-based guidance that can reduce trial-and-error care, avoid unnecessary procedures, and improve symptom management.
RDs increasingly support areas specific to a woman’s life cycle. Getting proper nutrition is a crucial component of fertility and the prenatal stage. Adequate nutrition throughout pregnancy is especially important for high-risk maternity cases and is an imperative part of postpartum recovery stage. As women enter perimenopause and menopause, they may see drastic changes to their appetite, body shape, and metabolism, all of which can be managed by RDs.
Dietitians play an important role in supporting individuals with autoimmune and inflammatory conditions, including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and multiple sclerosis, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis and other thyroid disorders, celiac disease, IBD (Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis), and other GI-related autoimmune conditions. Through targeted nutrition strategies, RDs help identify and manage dietary triggers that may worsen symptoms, support gut health and reduce systemic inflammation, ensure adequate nutrient intake during periods of flare-ups or treatment, and complement medical therapies to improve quality of life and disease management.
Despite strong clinical value, RD networks face the same challenge outlined in Hiding in Plain Sight; availability does not equal accessibility.
Common barriers include:
Limited employee awareness
Difficulty locating RDs within carrier search tools
Confusion around coverage and eligibility (e.g., condition-based requirements)
Lack of employer promotion or care navigation
As a result, employees often first seek higher-cost interventions, bypassing an evidence-based, preventive resource already included in their benefits.
Employers can take a similar approach to virtual specialty providers by:
Partnering with carriers to identify in-network RD providers and access pathways
Clarifying coverage rules (e.g., diagnosis requirements, visit limits)
Promoting use cases aligned to key cost drivers (e.g., GLP-1s, diabetes, GI health)
Embedding dietitians into broader care strategies, including weight management, condition management, and cancer support
When positioned correctly, dietitians can act as front-line, high-impact clinical providers.
As healthcare costs continue to rise particularly in areas like metabolic health, specialty drugs, and cancer care, nutrition support represents a powerful opportunity to improve outcomes while managing spend. In-network registered dietitian services are a high-value, clinically impactful, and already available resource that many employers, and their employee plan members, are not fully leveraging.
Emma Collins, Senior Consultant, Population Health & Well-Being
Emma is a Senior Consultant specializing in Population Health & Well-Being. In her role, Emma assists with implementing, delivering, assessing and analyzing customers’ well-being programs. She earned a BA in Health Policy & Management and minors in Community Health and Finance from Providence College.
Gina Julian, MS, RD, Principal, Population Health & Well-Being
Gina is a Principal and a registered dietitian specializing in Well-Being and Population Health practices. In her role, she helps oversee the implementation, delivery, assessment and analysis of customers’ well-being programs. Gina has worked in corporate well-being for more than twelve years and spent three years working for a cooking-based nutrition education nonprofit (Cooking Matters). Gina received her BA from Bates College and her Master’s in Nutrition Sciences from Boston University.