How can I tell if a telehealth company is legitimate?

Check three things: whether the prescriber is licensed in your state, which pharmacy actually makes the medication, and whether the site makes any of the five claims the FDA prohibits about compounded drugs.

What is LegitScript certification?

A private certification that Google, Meta and other advertising platforms require before a telehealth provider or online pharmacy can run ads. It is a signal that a company has been through a documentation review. It is not FDA approval.

What claims should make me walk away?

Any claim that a compounded drug is FDA approved, is a generic version of a brand, contains the same active ingredient as a named brand, is clinically proven to match it, or comes from an FDA approved or FDA licensed pharmacy.

How to check whether a telehealth provider is legitimate

Last reviewed 2026-Aug-20 · 7 min read

You can do most of this in about ten minutes, and it does not require any medical knowledge. The checks below are ordered from fastest to most involved.

1. Run the FDA's five prohibited claims against their website

The FDA has published the specific claims telehealth companies must not make about compounded drugs. Read the product page and look for these.

Branding that implies the telehealth company made the drug. If their own name is on the vial with no compounder mentioned, that is the pattern.
Calling it a generic version of, or the same as, an FDA approved drug. There is no generic Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro or Zepbound.
Saying or implying it is FDA approved, or has been evaluated for safety and effectiveness.
Saying it is clinically proven to produce the same result as the approved drug.
Describing the source as an "FDA approved" or "FDA licensed" pharmacy or outsourcing facility. In the FDA's own words, compounding facilities "are not 'FDA-approved' or 'FDA-licensed' entities."

The most common one you will find is the phrase "same active ingredient as" followed by a brand name. The FDA has quoted that exact language back to companies in warning letters.

Finding one of these does not prove a company is dishonest about everything else. It does tell you that whoever writes their marketing has not read the FDA's guidance, on a page selling a prescription medicine.

2. Find out who the prescriber is and where they are licensed

A clinician generally has to be licensed in the state where you are located at the time of the consultation, not only where they are.

Ask for the prescriber's name and licence state, then look it up. Every state medical board publishes a licence verification search, and they are free.

If a company will not tell you who is prescribing until after you have paid, that is worth pausing over.

3. Find out which pharmacy actually makes it

Ask which pharmacy or facility compounds the medication, and whether it is a state licensed pharmacy or a facility registered with the FDA as an outsourcing facility.

The FDA publishes a list of registered outsourcing facilities. State boards of pharmacy publish licence lookups for pharmacies. Both are searchable.

A company that cannot answer this question quickly is either not organised or does not want to.

4. Check whether they can legally advertise

Google, Meta and other major advertising platforms require telehealth providers and online pharmacies to hold LegitScript certification before they can run ads. Meta's own advertising policy states that it requires online pharmacies and telehealth providers to be actively certified with LegitScript, and to obtain separate authorisation from Meta after that.

This is a useful signal because it means a company has been through a documentation review covering licensing and prescribing practices. It is not FDA approval and it is not a safety guarantee. It is a floor, not a ceiling.

5. Read the billing and cancellation terms before you enter a card

This is where a large share of real world complaints live, and where federal enforcement has focused.

In December 2025 the Federal Trade Commission finalised an order against a telehealth weight loss provider covering unsubstantiated weight loss claims, fake testimonials, distorted consumer reviews, and undisclosed costs and membership commitments. The order requires clear disclosure of refund and cancellation terms before a consumer is asked to pay, a simple way to cancel, and prompt honouring of cancellations.

In July 2026 the FTC, joined by two states, filed a case alleging that a telehealth company enrolled consumers in recurring subscriptions on submitting an intake form, and hid the cancellation button.

So before you pay, find the answers to these on the site itself, not from a chat agent:

What is the total monthly cost at my target dose, including any consultation or membership fee?
Is this a subscription, and what is the renewal interval?
How do I cancel, and how many steps is it?
What is the refund policy if the medication does not arrive, or arrives warm?

6. Be careful with reviews

The FTC has a rule covering consumer reviews and testimonials that prohibits fake reviews and suppressing negative ones. That rule exists because the problem is common.

A star rating with no source, no count and no link is not evidence. A rating on a third party platform you can go and read is better. Neither tells you anything about the pharmacy.

The short version

Run the five claims against their marketing.
Get the prescriber's name and licence state, and verify it.
Get the compounding pharmacy's name and registration, and verify it.
Check LegitScript certification, and remember it is a floor.
Read the cancellation terms before paying.
Treat unsourced ratings as decoration.

None of this tells you whether a treatment is right for you. That is a conversation with a licensed clinician. What it tells you is whether the company on the other end is operating in the open.

What to ask

Who is my prescriber and in which states are they licensed?
Which pharmacy or outsourcing facility compounds my medication?
Is the product FDA approved or compounded?
What is the total cost at my target dose and how do I cancel?
Where can I read the terms before I pay?

Sources

FDA, "FDA to Telehealth Companies: What to Know When Promoting Compounded Drugs"
FDA warning letters to telehealth companies, September 2025, February 2026 and June 2026
Meta Transparency Center, Advertising Standards, Drugs and Pharmaceuticals
LegitScript, healthcare merchant certification standards
Federal Trade Commission, final order concerning a telehealth provider and GLP-1 weight loss advertising, December 2025
Federal Trade Commission and the states of Utah and California, complaint concerning a telehealth provider's privacy and billing practices, July 2026
Federal Trade Commission Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials, 16 C.F.R. Part 465

How we verify: see /how-we-verify.

Keep reading

The two kinds of compounding pharmacy, at /guides/503a-vs-503b.

What you are buying on the grey market, at /guides/grey-market-semaglutide.