Choose how to have the conversation
Look for a setting where you can ask questions and get a clear next step.
Online and in-person visits are ways to meet
Telehealth means having a care visit by video, a call, or an online exchange. A doctor or a different health professional may be the person treating you.
For online care, think about where you can talk privately and whether you would like someone nearby to help with the screen. For an in-person clinic, ask what to bring before the visit.
Ask either setting: Who will assess me? How can I ask questions afterward? What happens if we need to meet in person?
Your location matters for online care
Guidance from the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) was checked on September 26, 2026. For online care, the state where you are sitting sets the permission rules.Read the government licensing guidance
The person treating you needs a license or other permission to provide care in that state.
As of September 26, 2026, some states allowed a doctor licensed elsewhere to register for online care. This is called telehealth registration. It gives permission for online care in that state without a full license there. Each state's rules differ.Read about state permission
Tell the service where you plan to sit during the visit. Ask which state record shows the person's permission: a license or an online-care registration. Check that record with the state board.
Use the public license recordsThere needs to be room for follow-up questions
A state licensing board group, the Federation of State Medical Boards, says care over a screen must meet in-person visit standards.Read the board group's guidance
The group's guidance was checked September 26, 2026. It rejects treatment based on a fixed-question form alone when needed health details are missing. The doctor must have a way to ask further questions.
It also says the doctor must arrange needed tests or send a patient for care when an exam cannot be done online.
Ask how the person treating you will ask more questions: during a call, in a message, or at another visit? A health-history form can start the conversation. Ask how to reach whoever reads the form for a conversation.