The person providing care
Guidance checked in September 2026 says a doctor’s permission to practise depends on the patient’s location during the visit.
With only narrow exceptions, a doctor must hold that state’s licence or another form of legal permission to practise there.
The state medical board is the group that licenses doctors. Its public records show a doctor’s licence and any penalties or restrictions imposed by the board. Records can also show formal accusations of breaking professional rules that the board has not yet decided.
Get the doctor’s full name. Note the state where you will have the appointment, then open that state’s medical board website. Check whether the doctor is currently allowed to practise there. If you find a penalty, restriction or unresolved accusation, ask the board what it means before booking.
Find the relevant state medical boardThe pharmacy supplying medicine
FDA, the US drug regulator, notes a gap in online care: patients may be left without the name of the medicine’s maker.
Ask which pharmacy would make or supply it. Keep that name with the proposed product.
FDA’s pharmacy search links to the state records. A licence entry alone cannot show that the pharmacy is supplying medicines properly.
If the online pharmacy’s name is absent from your state’s licence search, FDA says to avoid that pharmacy.
After checking the licence, ask who made the exact medicine and whether it has FDA approval or was specially prepared. Ask whoever writes the prescription to explain your need for a specially prepared medicine. If the answers are unclear, ask your usual doctor or pharmacist to help check them before ordering.
Open the FDA pharmacy licence lookupKeep separate search results for the person providing care and the pharmacy. Check both names before deciding whether to use the service.