How to choose a GLP-1 telehealth provider

A checklist for choosing an online GLP-1 provider: who treats you, which pharmacy fills it, what the price includes, and the red flags that mean walk away.

Search for GLP-1 treatment online and you will find dozens of services that look alike: a quiz, a price, a promise of delivery. Underneath, they run the same basic steps, because that is what a legitimate telehealth prescription requires. What separates them is how much they tell you, and how much of it you can check. This checklist works for any service, including GLP.

Who is treating you?

A GLP-1 medication is prescription-only, so somebody licensed has to review you and be able to say no. The service should name the medical practice that provides care and tell you the clinician treating you is licensed in your state. 'Licensed clinician' covers physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants, all of whom can prescribe within their license. Verify a license on your state medical or nursing board's public register, which takes a minute. A service that names no practice and no clinician has given you nothing to check.

At GLP, care is provided by independent licensed practices contracted through OpenLoop Health, named on the care-team page, and the clinician who reviews you is licensed in your state.

Which pharmacy prepares the medication?

If the medication is compounded, a licensed pharmacy prepares it for you on the clinician's prescription, and the service should tell you which one. Check the pharmacy's license on the board of pharmacy of the state it operates in, and look for NABP accreditation. Our article on verifying a compounding pharmacy walks through both, and the 503A versus 503B article explains the two kinds of compounding pharmacy. GLP names its partner pharmacies in its Terms of Service.

Is the medication described honestly?

A compounded medication should be called compounded, and the service should say plainly what that means. Compounded medications are not FDA-approved and are not reviewed by the FDA for safety, effectiveness, or quality. The FDA has said it intends to act against unapproved GLP-1 drugs marketed as 'generic', 'identical' or 'the same as' the approved products. A service that uses a brand name to sell you a compounded preparation, or calls it generic or FDA-approved, is misdescribing what you would receive.

What does the price include, and when do you see it?

You should see the full price before you enter payment details, with the billing period stated: per month and per 4 weeks are not the same amount over a year. Ask what is inside the price (the clinician's review, the medication, shipping, follow-up) and what is billed on top (membership fees, visits, supplies). Ask what the price becomes after any introductory period, and what happens to your money if the clinician declines or you cancel. The cancellation terms should be written down somewhere you can find.

What does the service promise?

The honest answer to 'how much will I lose' is that it varies, and a service that says so is being straight with you. Be wary of results promised in pounds, percentages or weeks, before-and-after photos, guaranteed approval, and review widgets with five stars and no reviews behind them. 'Prescription never guaranteed' and 'individual results vary' are the phrases of a service that expects to be held to its words.

Can you ask a question before paying, and after?

There should be a way to ask a question before you commit, and a care team you can message once you are on treatment: about side effects, a missed dose, a change in your health. Look for published support hours and a real contact page. The question of what happens if something goes wrong at eleven at night has an answer at a legitimate service, even if the answer is 'call 911'.

Does it serve your state, and how?

Services vary in which states they cover and in how a visit happens. In most states an asynchronous review is permitted; in Arkansas, the District of Columbia, Delaware, Kansas, Mississippi, New Mexico, Rhode Island and West Virginia, state rules require a live video visit before a first prescription. A service should tell you which applies to you before you start, not after. GLP serves all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

How is your health information handled?

Look for a Notice of Privacy Practices that says which medical practice holds your records, and a telehealth consent you can read before you agree to it. A service that cannot tell you who the covered entity is has not thought about it.

Red flags that end the conversation

• The product is sold 'for research use only' or 'not for human consumption'.
• No prescription is needed, or approval is guaranteed.
• A brand name is used to sell a compounded preparation.
• The price appears only after you enter payment details, or is only an introductory price.
• Results are promised in pounds, percentages or weeks.
• No medical practice, clinician or pharmacy is named.
• A countdown timer or 'last spots' urges you to decide now.

None of this requires expertise. It requires asking a service to name things, and checking the names it gives you.

This article is educational and is not a substitute for personalized medical advice. Whether any medication is appropriate for you is a decision for a licensed clinician who has reviewed your health history.