A new measure proposed by a state lawmaker and physician suggests that public medical schools require three hours of nutrition coursework.
House Bill 1972, introduced by State Rep. Tom Oliverson (R-Cypress), would mandate that medical degree programs require a nutrition curriculum, covering topics like healthy caloric intake and diet modifications for people with chronic illnesses.
The curriculum must also include nutrition strategies to prevent common conditions like diabetes and obesity. Course instruction would underscore the importance of proper nutrition and inform students about common food additives used in the United States.
Oliverson’s chief of staff, Molly Wilson, told Texas Scorecard that the Make America Healthy Again movement inspired the legislation.
“He has told me that when he was in medical school, his only nutrition education was in the form o[f] an hour-long seminar, and he feels it is deeply important for physicians to have more foundational nutritional education,” Wilson said.
Oliverson is a managing partner and practicing anesthesiologist in Texas’ largest anesthesia provider group.
With Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s rising popularity as President Donald Trump’s nominee for Health and Human Services Secretary, the MAHA movement has gained momentum, and voices in the medical community are advocating for the inclusion of nutrition curricula in medical degree programs.
Calley Means, Harvard alum and founder of True Medicine, said on The Tucker Carlson Show that an overwhelming majority of medical schools don’t offer or require only one nutrition class.
“Doctors simply aren’t learning why people are getting sick, which we would all assume they do. Eighty percent of the course loads are in pharmacology. It’s on how to take people that are getting sicker and sicker and manage those conditions, not to cure them,” Means said.
Calley’s sister, Dr. Casey Means, also said that she believes pharmaceutical companies funding medical schools have tainted education.
Oliverson’s legislation restricts coursework from being funded or influenced by a pharmaceutical or food and beverage company.
If passed, the measure would take effect on September 1 and would not apply to students who enrolled in medical school before the spring 2026 semester.
