A guide to care visits
Ask the same questions about office and online visits
Compare what each visit can find out, how you can ask questions and who will help afterwards.
Choose by what needs to be discussed
Compare settings using the same questions. Who will speak with you? How will they assess the concern? What happens if the visit cannot answer it?
For tests or examinations needed to understand your concern, the Federation of State Medical Boards requires the doctor to complete them, arrange them elsewhere or send you to another provider.
Keep the same criteria across settings
| Compare | In person | Remote care |
|---|---|---|
| Understanding my concern | What will the person treating me examine or discuss? | What can we discuss or examine this way, and what would need another visit? |
| Your questions | Can we talk through the reasons for the plan? | Can I ask questions before and after a decision? |
| Needed tests | Where would a test happen? | Who arranges a test away from the screen? |
| After the visit | Who do I reach with a concern? | Who answers messages, and how does care continue? |
| What you would pay for | What does the quoted visit include? | What does a visit fee or membership include? |
Ask about the medicine for either kind of visit
A medicine prepared to meet a particular need is called a compounded medicine. Medicine approvals in the US come from the Food and Drug Administration, or FDA.
Compounded medicines have not received FDA approval, even when a licensed care service supplies them, as of September 26, 2026.