Many people require a combination of diet and medications to optimise their health and improve clinical outcomes which is where dietitians can make a significant impact as experts in nutrition and diet.

Dietitians have held prescribing responsibilities since 2016, when they were authorised to become supplementary prescribers following completion of an approved non-medical prescribing course. Over the past nine years, they have demonstrated their capability, professionalism, and safety in this role.

In October 2025, Dr Nick Thompson wrote a letter to Karin Smyth MP, Minister of State for Secondary Care, urging the UK Government to expedite the introduction of legislation enabling independent prescribing rights for dietitians.

The current system of supplementary prescribing is inefficient, adding unnecessary layers of bureaucracy that strains NHS resources, slows down care, and delays the transformation urgently needed to meet patient and system demands.

A recent evaluation by the University of Surrey the TraDip study highlighted the benefits of dietetic prescribing, including improved patient experience, a wider choice of treatment options available to patients, and NHS cost savings.

This week, we received a response from Zubir Ahmed MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health Innovation and Safety, which can be read here.

The BDA are also actively lobbying on this matter, and are calling for dietitians to support the campaign by sharing their experiences of supplementary prescribing to show that it’s time to give dietitians independent prescribing rights. You can find out more and get involved here.