Telehealth Informed Consent
Effective Date: October 1, 2026. Before receiving care through Makin' Weight and Wellness MD Group, you should understand what telehealth is, what it can and cannot do, and what is expected of you as a patient. Please read this document carefully. By proceeding with an intake, consultation, or treatment through our Services, you are confirming that you understand and agree to the terms below.
1. What Telehealth Is
Telehealth means receiving medical evaluation, consultation, and ongoing care from a licensed physician remotely — through written intake forms, secure messaging, and, where applicable, audio or video visits — rather than through an in-person office visit. Your care team uses the information you provide, along with any records or lab work you share, to evaluate your health history and determine an appropriate course of treatment.
2. What Telehealth Cannot Do
Telehealth has real limitations compared to in-person care, and you should go into this process with clear eyes about them: No physical examination. Your physician cannot listen to your heart or lungs, palpate your abdomen, check your reflexes, or perform other hands-on components of a physical exam that might be part of an in-person visit. Reliance on self-reported information. Your physician's assessment depends on the accuracy and completeness of the health history, symptoms, current medications, and other information you provide. Incomplete or inaccurate information can affect the safety and appropriateness of any treatment recommendation. Limited real-time observation. Subtle physical signs that an in-person provider might notice may not be visible or apparent through telehealth. Not appropriate for every condition. Some conditions or symptoms require in-person evaluation, urgent care, or emergency treatment that cannot be safely handled through telehealth alone. Your physician will use clinical judgment to determine whether your situation is appropriate for telehealth-based care, and may recommend in-person evaluation, additional testing, or a referral elsewhere if it is not.
3. You Must Be Located in California
Because our physicians are licensed to practice medicine only in California, you must be physically present in the State of California at the time of your intake, any consultation or visit, and any follow-up care. This is a legal requirement, not a preference. If you are traveling outside California, please wait until you are back in the state before completing an intake or consultation. We are not able to see, prescribe to, or ship medication to individuals located outside California at the time of care, regardless of where you otherwise live.
4. This Is Not for Emergencies
Telehealth through Makin' Weight is not designed or equipped for emergency care. If you are experiencing a medical emergency, chest pain, difficulty breathing, thoughts of self-harm, a severe allergic reaction, or any other urgent or life-threatening symptom, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room immediately. Do not use our messaging system or intake forms to report an emergency, as our team may not see or respond to a message in real time.
5. Risks of Telehealth Compared to In-Person Care
As with any medical care, there are risks involved in receiving treatment through telehealth, including but not limited to: the possibility that information transmitted electronically may be incomplete or, in rare cases, intercepted or accessed by unauthorized parties despite reasonable safeguards; delays in evaluation or treatment due to technical issues; and the general limitations described above regarding physical examination and self-reported information. Your physician will weigh these factors in deciding whether telehealth is appropriate for your specific situation.
6. Your Physician May Decline to Treat You
Completing an intake form or paying for the Services does not guarantee that you will receive a prescription or any specific treatment. Your treating physician exercises independent medical judgment and may decline to prescribe, request more information or testing, recommend a different treatment, or refer you to in-person care if they determine that telehealth treatment, or the specific medication requested, is not clinically appropriate for you. You will not be charged for medication until a physician has reviewed and approved your protocol.
7. Confidentiality
Communications between you and your care team — including intake responses, messages, and visit records — are treated as confidential medical information and are protected consistent with applicable healthcare privacy laws, as described further in our Privacy Policy. As with any electronic communication, no system can guarantee perfect security, and you should avoid sending highly sensitive information through unsecured channels outside of our platform (for example, ordinary text message or email) where avoidable.
8. Your Right to Withdraw Consent
Your participation in telehealth care through Makin' Weight is voluntary. You may withdraw your consent to telehealth treatment at any time, without penalty, by notifying our care team or canceling your account. Withdrawing consent will stop future telehealth visits and treatment but does not undo care, prescriptions, or shipments that already occurred before you withdrew.
9. Questions
If you have questions about telehealth, its limitations, or whether it's right for your situation, you're encouraged to ask your physician directly during your consultation, or to reach out to our support team before you begin. By proceeding with intake or treatment, you acknowledge that you have read and understood this consent, that you are physically located in California, and that you agree to receive care under the terms described above.