The appropriations bill signed into law by President Trump on February 3, 2026, included the PREVENT DIABETES Act, which extends virtual access to the National Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) under Medicare for 3 years.

In 2017, Medicare began covering access to the DPP, a lifestyle program first launched in 2010 by the US CDC with the aim of preventing type 2 diabetes in people with prediabetes. The so-called Medicare DPP (MDPP) Expanded Model is a 1-year evidence-based behavior change educational program for eligible beneficiaries within qualifying programs. It involves 16 weekly sessions followed by 6-month maintenance sessions.

The MDPP was granted temporary emergency authority, along with other health services, to be conducted virtually during the COVID pandemic. Now, with the PREVENT DIABETES Act, the MDPP becomes a permanent benefit in Medicare and extends virtual and asynchronous access through December 31, 2029.

“This addresses long-standing access barriers and improves reach in rural and underserved communities,” the American Medical Association, which had lobbied for the Act along with other professional medical organizations, said in a statement.

The new legislation also allows Medicare beneficiaries to participate in the DPP more than once.

The Act responds to issues previously brought up by various medical societies.

In a 2024 support letter to two members of Congress who co-sponsored the PREVENT DIABETES Act, the Endocrine Society pointed out that of the approximately 98 million Americans with prediabetes, about 27.2 million are aged 65 years or older. Yet, they noted at the time, the vast majority of DPP participants access the program through private health plans or employers, not Medicare. The society cited lack of access to in-person MDPP locations as a major reason for that.

Co-signers to the letter included the American Diabetes Association, American Heart Association, American Medical Association, American Podiatric Medical Association, American Telemedicine Association, and the Association of Diabetes Care & Education Specialists.

Miriam E. Tucker is a freelance journalist based in the Washington, DC, area. She is a regular contributor to Medscape Medical News, with other work appearing in the Washington Post, NPR’s Shots blog, and Diatribe. She is on X @MiriamETucker and BlueSky @miriametucker.bsky.social.