Minnesota Sunset Act

Catching up on email, I finally read the Minnesota Dietetic Association's educational document on licensure and learned about an intriguing act passed at the end of the the 2011 Legislative Session. But first...

What does licensure mean for dietitians?
Public safety. While the Commission on Dietetic Registration gives RDs that "R," it is not a legal authority and cannot restrict RDs who may harm the public. The Licensure Board does have legal authority and so can tell unlicensed practitioners to cease and desist, etc. In addition, being licensed conveys greater credibility to those insurers from whom we'd like reimbursement.


What is the Minnesota Sunset Act?

A MN sunset, courtesy of D. Bjorn

This act established an Advisory Commission to review the merits of departments, agencies, and other government entities to make sure they are

• efficient and effective,
• meeting their goals and objectives,
• complying with federal and state laws,
• addressing complaints in a timely manner, and
• not duplicating or overlapping with other agencies,

among other criteria. The law places agencies into six groups, each with a scheduled review date and possible expiration date.

Who's up first?
The first batch is set to expire June 30th, 2013:

• the Amateur Sports and Combative Sports Commissions
• Capitol Area Architectural and Planning Board
• the Councils on Asian-Pacific Minnesotans, Black Minnesotans, Affairs of Chicano/Latino People, Indian Affairs, and Disabilities
• all health-related licensing boards
• all advisory groups associated with these agencies

You can see that the Minnesota Board of Dietetics and Nutrition Practice falls neatly under that fourth bullet point.

What does this all mean?
As far as I can tell, the Minnesota Sunset Act is a means to shrink government and save money.  Whether it will do so and how it will affect RDs remains to be seen.