Prime Health is yet another telehealth provider specializing in GLP-1 medications. After seeing several ads in my Facebook feed for it, I decided to give it a try to see how their intake process works and who they are serving. As a personal trainer and women’s weight loss coach, I am staying on the cutting edge of the medical weight loss industry so I can best serve my patients. I’ve also been involved in researching GLP-1s since 2000, and my curiosity has yet to end.
One thing that I’ve learned over the years is that not all online telehealth providers are the same, but many of them have a lot in common, especially those who are offering compounded GLP-1 medications. One of the biggest discerning factors as of late is accessibility. In the beginning, GLP-1s were strictly offered to those with a BMI >30 or those with a BMI >27 with a qualifying medical condition. These days, the game is changing, and these medications are becoming more accessible.
Whether you agree or disagree, it’s what’s happening, which is why I think it’s important to understand the nuances of different telehealth options and make sure you’re aligning with one that works for you, your goals, and your health status.
Let’s talk about my experience with Prime Health’s intake process.
Not Everyone Is Qualified (BMI Matters & Other Factors Matter)
Most GLP-1 providers have a very similar intake process. You start by taking their quiz or questionnaire, which will collect some basic information about you and your goals, and it will more or less pre-qualify you for treatment. Some providers, like Willow, don’t disqualify you based on your current BMI (body mass index). However, Prime Health does, but the threshold is pretty low. I had to fudge my numbers a bit to be able to advance to the next step in the approval process.
I started by putting my actual data in - I am 5’7” and around 133 lbs (BMI ~21). I was quickly disqualified as a potential candidate because my BMI was too low for the program. I then bumped my weight up until I got the point of having a BMI that was high enough for Prime Health to allow me to go to the next step (keep in mind that I am NOT recommending that you provide false information just to get medication prescribed, I am doing this for research purposes only). Turns out, Prime Health would allow me to advance with a BMI of 22 (so actually pretty close to my actual weight).
More goes into Prime Health’s decision as to whether or not someone qualifies for medication than just BMI - they ask a lot of other qualifying questions in the process, so even if you qualify from a BMI perspective, it appears that you also need to have a qualifying medical condition. There are a number of qualifying medical conditions, and each company has its own parameters for those. Each provider determines which medical conditions are clinically justified, regardless of BMI.
I continued through the rest of the quiz with my BMI set to 22. I didn’t indicate any other problems, and by the time I got to the end, I was disqualified. I ended up going through the quiz multiple times with different answers before I finally got pushed to the next step. At this point, I had gone back and put my weight much higher, and that seemed to get me approved. So it seems as though they will entertain lower BMIs, but they are strict on needing there to be a qualifying medical condition alongside it, which is great. It’s very controversial when providers are prescribing GLP-1s without proper medical necessity.
Approval and Next Steps
Once I met the BMI qualification, I was able to continue on with the remainder of the quiz. There are a handful of questions that pertain to medical history, current medical conditions, goals, etc. They also ask what other areas you’d like help improving so that they can determine your medical formulation. This question is asked because they utilize compounded medications, which means that the GLP-1 is combined with something else, like B-12 or L-carnitine. This is a compounding stipulation that allows these providers to continue to utilize compounded medications and make “personalized formulations.”
At the end of the quiz, I was met with an approval screen that gave me two medication options to choose from: the Semaglutide Plan and the Tirzepatide Plan. The Semaglutide plan costs $299/month, and the Tirzepatide plan costs $399/month. These prices are very standard for the industry. Tirzepatide costs more because it is a more advanced drug and has a higher success rate. They only offer injections, not oral tablets. If you’re looking for oral tablets, I recommend checking out Josie's GLP-1 options (especially if you’re a woman over 35, as that’s their specialty).
Prime Health’s plans include a doctor consultation, prescription, 4 weeks of injections, and free shipping. One that that’s really unique about Prime Health is that they state that their prices remain the same at all dosage levels - most providers increase the price as the dosage increases, which can get pretty expensive. Another unique, and potentially reassuring, benefit of using Prime Health for GLP-1s is that they offer a money-back guarantee. If you don’t lose 10% of your bodyweight, you get your money back. I am not sure of the timeframe on that, but money-back guarantees aren’t super common in the industry, so if you’re someone who’s skeptical about whether it’ll work for you, Prime Health provides a bit of assurance that you won’t waste your money.
One thing I noted was that Prime Health didn’t ask to verify my ID, which is pretty standard for most providers. I am assuming that this step would be requested after entering my payment information and completing my purchase. The majority of platforms I have tried have done it this way - you pay first based on preliminary approval, and then after your ID is verified and the doctor reviews your information, you will either be officially prescribed the medication or you will be denied and issued a refund. The only providers I have seen thus far that don’t require payment before final approval are Eden. With Eden, they only charge your card if the prescription is written and sent to the pharmacy. Read my experience with Eden here.
Overall Thoughts and Opinions on Prime Health
There’s nothing overwhelmingly different or flashy about Prime Health’s GLP-1 process - it’s pretty status quo and straightforward. It appears to me that Prime Health is following the industry trend of allowing lower BMI patients to be accepted so long as they have another qualifying medical condition that would necessitate it. This concept, in my opinion, will continue to be adopted more and more as research is done indicating that GLP-1s can be an effective treatment for more than just obesity.
As far as pricing goes, Prime Health is priced very competitively and in accordance with other providers. I like that they have a money-back guarantee, as it gives a layer of protection in case the medication does not work for you. All in all, Prime Health appears to be a solid choice for those seeking compounded weight loss injections. I didn’t go through with the process of ordering and corresponding with their doctors, but since many of these platforms utilize the same doctors and pharmacies, I am not overly concerned with the experience should I have gotten to that point.