Quick answerWhat to know first
Changing GLP-1 providers is not the same as automatically transferring a prescription. A new clinician may need to review your medication history, current dose, prior response, side effects, relevant records, pharmacy information, and other clinical factors before determining appropriate next steps. Continuation of a medication, dose, or prescription is not guaranteed.
General education only. This guide does not provide individual medical advice, establish care, or guarantee treatment or a prescription.
What does transferring GLP-1 care mean?
Transfer of care means moving responsibility for future clinical evaluation and follow-up from one clinician or practice to another. It can include sharing records and treatment history, but it does not transfer a clinical decision. The new clinician remains responsible for deciding what is appropriate based on the information available at the time of the visit.
Four actions are often grouped together even though they are different: moving medical care, sending medical records, choosing a pharmacy, and receiving a new prescription. Records document prior care. A pharmacy handles dispensing. A prescription can be issued only after an authorized clinician makes an independent decision. Completing one action does not guarantee the others.
Information a new clinician may need
A useful transfer history is specific enough to reduce guesswork. Bring the exact medication and active ingredient, the current labeled dose and frequency, the date of the most recent dose, how long you have used it, prior doses, and the name of the clinician or program that managed it. If the product came in a vial or prefilled device, the label or packaging may help identify the formulation and concentration.
The clinician may also ask about treatment response, side effects, missed doses, other prescriptions, over-the-counter medicines, supplements, allergies, relevant health history, recent laboratory results, and the reason you are changing care. Not every item is mandatory for every person. Accurate information is more useful than filling gaps with estimates.
- Exact medication and active ingredient
- Current labeled dose, frequency, and most recent dose date
- Prior doses, duration of use, response, and side effects
- Current prescriptions, supplements, and allergies
- Relevant medical history, records, and recent labs when available
- Prior clinician or program and preferred pharmacy contact details
- Reason for changing care and your current questions
Medical records can establish the treatment story
Records can help a new clinician understand why treatment began, what was previously considered, how the plan changed, and what monitoring occurred. Useful records may include the most recent visit note, medication list, prescription history, relevant lab reports, prior authorization information, or a summary from the previous practice.
Missing records do not automatically determine the outcome. They may, however, limit what can be confirmed. A clinician may ask for additional information or defer a decision until the treatment history is clearer. Requesting records early can reduce delays, but patients should not delay urgent or necessary care while waiting for routine paperwork.
- Recent clinical notes or treatment summaries
- Medication and dose history
- Relevant laboratory reports with dates and units
- Documented allergies or adverse reactions
- Previous pharmacy and prescriber information
The medical practice and pharmacy have different roles
Kosius evaluates the patient, makes independent clinical decisions, and may prescribe when clinically appropriate. The selected pharmacy determines its own pricing, inventory, dispensing, fulfillment, pickup, and delivery processes. A pharmacy can receive records or a prescription, but it cannot replace the medical evaluation required for a new clinical decision.
Changing pharmacies and changing clinicians can happen together, but they do not need to. A patient may keep a current pharmacy if it can lawfully fill an eligible prescription, or choose another pharmacy based on location, services, price, or delivery availability. Confirm pharmacy details before the visit so a clinician has accurate information if a prescription is appropriate.
Can an existing GLP-1 prescription simply be continued?
Continuation should not be treated as automatic. A prior prescription shows that another clinician made a decision at an earlier time. The new clinician must consider the present situation, including the medication, dose, response, side effects, health changes, other medicines, monitoring, and whether additional records or testing are relevant.
Possible outcomes can include continuing discussion of the current approach, discussing a different option, requesting more information, recommending laboratory or in-person follow-up, or deciding that prescribing is not appropriate. The visit fee covers the evaluation, not a guaranteed medication, dose, refill, or outcome.
What if you are between doses?
Bring the date of your most recent dose, the exact labeled dose, and any information about missed or delayed doses. Do not independently restart, repeat, increase, decrease, or change timing based only on general online information. Individual timing questions depend on the product, treatment history, health context, and clinician judgment.
If you have new, severe, or concerning symptoms, seek appropriate medical care rather than waiting for a routine transfer appointment. Kosius does not provide emergency care. A transfer guide cannot evaluate symptoms or provide individualized dosing instructions.
What happens during a transfer-of-care evaluation?
The clinician may review why treatment was started, which medication and formulation were used, prior dose changes, response, side effects, current goals, relevant health history, other medicines, and monitoring. The discussion may also cover whether records or labs add useful context and whether telehealth is sufficient for the next decision.
The practical portion of the visit can include preferred pharmacy details, separate costs, communication expectations, and how future follow-up or refill evaluation is handled. A clear plan should identify what the patient needs to do next and which questions belong to the clinical team versus the pharmacy.
Costs to clarify before changing care
Separate the clinical evaluation from medication and pharmacy expenses. Kosius currently charges $100 for the public Initial GLP-1 Evaluation. Medication, pharmacy, laboratory, delivery, refill, and future-visit costs are separate unless explicitly stated. The selected pharmacy controls medication pricing and fulfillment.
Ask whether future clinical review uses a follow-up or refill visit, whether laboratory work may be requested, and whether delivery carries a pharmacy fee. Price alone does not establish that a treatment is appropriate or that a prescription will be issued.
Questions about specific GLP-1 options
Patients may arrive with questions about semaglutide, tirzepatide, a prior compounded medication, or a brand-name product. These names can help identify treatment history, but they should not be used to assume equivalence, availability, or eligibility. FDA-approved and compounded products are regulated differently, and compounded drugs are not FDA-approved.
Bring the exact product label when possible and ask the clinician to explain which details matter. The FDA advises patients to use a prescription from a licensed clinician and a state-licensed pharmacy, and it has warned against misleading claims about unapproved GLP-1 products.
