Fast Medical Weight Loss operates as a telehealth platform connecting patients with independently contracted licensed clinicians. This Code of Conduct exists to ensure that all clinical care delivered through our platform meets the highest standards of patient safety, medical ethics, and professional integrity — regardless of the asynchronous or remote nature of the care relationship.

This Code applies to:

• All licensed physicians (MD/DO) contracted to evaluate patients and issue prescriptions
• Nurse practitioners and physician assistants providing clinical support
• All clinical staff with access to patient health information or patient communications
• Medical directors and supervising physicians

This Code does not limit any additional obligations imposed by state medical licensing boards, applicable law, DEA regulations, or the standards of any professional association to which a provider belongs. Where this Code and an external requirement conflict, the more stringent standard applies.

All clinical conduct through our platform must be grounded in the following principles, which reflect the foundational ethics of medical practice.

Standard of care

All clinical evaluations and prescribing decisions must meet the standard of care applicable to the provider's specialty and the patient's clinical situation. The asynchronous or telehealth nature of a consultation does not reduce the standard of care required.

Thorough evaluation

Before issuing any prescription, the provider must conduct a clinically adequate review of the patient's health intake, including:

• BMI or weight-related eligibility criteria
• Relevant comorbidities and current diagnoses
• Current medications and potential drug interactions
• Contraindications specific to GLP-1 medications, including thyroid history and pancreatitis history
• Pregnancy status and reproductive plans
• Mental health history relevant to appetite and weight management
• Prior weight loss attempts and outcomes

Evidence-based practice

Prescribing decisions must be grounded in current, peer-reviewed clinical evidence. Providers should be familiar with the published trial data for each medication they prescribe, including STEP, SURMOUNT, and SUSTAIN trial series, and current FDA labeling.

Continuing education

Providers are expected to maintain clinical currency in obesity medicine, GLP-1 pharmacology, and relevant regulatory developments. We recommend a minimum of 10 CME hours annually in topics directly relevant to the scope of practice on this platform.

Scope of the relationship

The clinical relationship established through this platform is limited in scope to weight management services. Providers should not extend this relationship to diagnose or treat unrelated conditions, and should refer patients to their primary care physician or appropriate specialist for needs outside this scope.

Informed consent

Before prescribing any medication, providers must ensure the patient has been informed — through the platform's intake and consent materials — of the nature of the medication, its common and serious side effects, its contraindications, the fact that it is compounded, and the limitations of telehealth care. Providers must not proceed if a patient has indicated they did not review or understand the consent materials.

Communication standards

All clinical communications through the patient portal must be:

• Clinically accurate and consistent with current evidence
• Written in plain language that is understandable to a non-medical audience
• Free of dismissive, condescending, or stigmatizing language regarding weight or body image
• Documented completely in the patient record
• Responded to within the platform's committed response time standards

Weight stigma

Weight stigma in clinical settings causes measurable harm and is associated with delayed care-seeking, reduced treatment adherence, and worse health outcomes. Providers must at all times communicate with patients about weight in a clinically neutral, non-judgmental manner consistent with current obesity medicine best practice guidance from the Obesity Medicine Association and ASMBS.

Appropriate prescribing

Providers must prescribe only medications that are clinically appropriate for the individual patient based on their complete health intake. A prescription is never appropriate if a provider has not reviewed the patient's health history, if known contraindications are present, or if the provider has reason to believe the information provided is materially incomplete or false.

Titration responsibility

Providers are responsible for prescribing an appropriate starting dose and a clinically sound titration schedule. Titration must follow evidence-based parameters. Providers must not issue blanket approvals for all dose levels at intake without individualizing the titration plan.

Prohibited prescribing conduct

• Prescribing to a patient with a known absolute contraindication
• Prescribing without reviewing the patient's complete health intake
• Issuing prescriptions to achieve volume, productivity, or revenue targets
• Prescribing to a patient who has indicated current pregnancy or intent to become pregnant imminently
• Prescribing controlled substances outside the scope of this platform
• Issuing prescriptions under another provider's credentials or allowing another provider to prescribe under yours
• Accepting any form of compensation, gift, or benefit from a pharmacy, manufacturer, or compounder in exchange for prescribing decisions
• Prescribing to friends, family members, or anyone with whom you have a personal relationship

Prescribing under uncertainty

When a patient's intake raises clinical uncertainty — incomplete medical history, unresolved drug interactions, or ambiguous contraindications — the appropriate response is to request additional information before prescribing, not to proceed and document the uncertainty after the fact. When in doubt, do not prescribe.

Documentation standards

Complete, accurate, and timely documentation is both a clinical obligation and a legal one. All providers must document the following for each patient encounter:

• The clinical basis for prescribing, including relevant findings from the health intake
• Any contraindications reviewed and ruled out
• The specific medication, dose, and titration schedule prescribed and the rationale for that plan
• Any clinical concerns raised during the evaluation and how they were addressed
• Patient communications and follow-up instructions provided
• Any referrals recommended to other providers

Accuracy of records

Clinical records must accurately reflect the care provided. Backdating entries, altering records after the fact without clear notation, or documenting evaluations that did not occur are prohibited and may constitute fraud.

Timeliness

Clinical notes must be completed within 24 hours of the patient encounter. Prescriptions must not be issued without a contemporaneous or prior clinical note supporting the prescribing decision.

All patient health information accessed through this platform is protected health information (PHI) under HIPAA. Providers must adhere to all HIPAA Privacy and Security Rule requirements as a condition of this agreement.

Required behaviors

• Access only the patient records necessary to provide care — the minimum necessary standard applies
• Never access patient records out of personal curiosity or for any purpose unrelated to direct patient care
• Never discuss patient information in unsecured settings, including public spaces, personal email, or unencrypted messaging applications
• Report any suspected or confirmed PHI breach immediately to the platform's Privacy Officer
• Complete all required HIPAA training before accessing patient records and annually thereafter

Prohibited disclosures

• Sharing patient information with family members, friends, or colleagues not involved in that patient's care
• Discussing patient cases on social media or in any public forum, even without the patient's name
• Providing patient information to third parties — including law enforcement — without proper legal authorization, except as required by mandatory reporting law
• Using patient data for research or publication without proper IRB approval and patient consent

A conflict of interest exists when a provider's personal, financial, or professional interests have the potential — actual or perceived — to influence clinical judgment in ways that may not serve the patient's best interest. Providers have an ongoing obligation to identify and disclose conflicts.

Required disclosures

Providers must disclose to the platform's Medical Director any:

• Financial relationship with a pharmaceutical manufacturer, compounding pharmacy, or pharmacy benefit manager whose products are used on this platform
• Speaker bureau, advisory board, or consulting arrangement with any entity related to GLP-1 medications or obesity treatment
• Ownership interest in a pharmacy, supplement company, or weight management service that could benefit from prescribing decisions made through this platform
• Personal relationship with a patient that could compromise clinical objectivity

Platform financial incentives

Fast Medical Weight Loss does not structure provider compensation in ways that reward prescribing volume. Providers are compensated for completed clinical evaluations — not for the number of prescriptions issued or patients approved. We do not offer bonuses, accelerators, or other incentives tied to prescription rates.

Conduct toward patients

Providers must treat every patient with dignity, respect, and clinical seriousness. This includes patients who present with complex histories, patients who ask challenging questions, patients who disagree with clinical recommendations, and patients whose prescribed plan requires denial of a prescription request.

Conduct toward colleagues and staff

Providers must maintain respectful, professional conduct in all interactions with other platform providers, care coordinators, support staff, and administrative personnel. Disrespectful, discriminatory, threatening, or harassing conduct toward any colleague — regardless of their role — is grounds for contract termination.

Social media and public communications

Providers may not make public statements — including on social media, podcasts, or media interviews — that disparage patients, colleagues, or this platform, or that could be reasonably interpreted as clinical endorsements of unapproved products, treatments, or claims outside the evidence base.

Providers who publicly associate themselves with this platform must ensure that any clinical statements they make publicly are accurate, evidence-based, and not misleading to a lay audience.

Licensing and credentialing

Providers must promptly notify the platform's credentialing team of any change to their license status, including investigations, suspensions, conditions, board complaints, or voluntary surrenders — in any state, not only states in which they practice through this platform.

Professional boundaries protect the integrity of the clinical relationship and safeguard patient welfare. Boundary violations in telehealth, where providers and patients may never meet in person, can be subtle — which makes vigilance especially important.

Prohibited boundary violations

• Initiating personal contact with a patient outside the patient portal, including through personal phone, email, or social media
• Accepting gifts, money, or personal favors from patients
• Entering into any personal, romantic, or financial relationship with a current patient
• Providing clinical services to any individual with whom you have a pre-existing personal relationship
• Sharing personal contact information with patients for clinical purposes — all clinical communication must occur through the secure portal
• Making prescribing decisions based on a patient's emotional state, personal appeals, or expressed distress unrelated to clinical factors

Managing boundary challenges

Providers who receive unsolicited personal contact from a patient, feel that a clinical relationship has become inappropriate, or are uncertain whether a situation constitutes a boundary concern should contact the Medical Director immediately. Raising a concern is not a disciplinary event — it is expected professional conduct.

Mandatory reporting

Providers retain all mandatory reporting obligations imposed by state law, regardless of the telehealth context. These include reporting obligations related to suspected child abuse, elder abuse, domestic violence, and certain communicable diseases, as applicable in the patient's state of residence.

Adverse event reporting

Providers must report any serious adverse event — including hospitalization, emergency care, or death potentially related to a prescribed medication — to the Medical Director within 24 hours of becoming aware of the event. Adverse events may also require reporting to the FDA MedWatch program and the dispensing pharmacy.

Reporting misconduct

Providers who become aware of conduct by a colleague that violates this Code — including unsafe prescribing, boundary violations, HIPAA breaches, or fraudulent documentation — have a professional and contractual obligation to report it to the Medical Director or through our confidential reporting process described in Section 13.

Self-reporting

Providers must self-report to the Medical Director any of the following as soon as they occur:

• Any state board complaint, investigation, or adverse action — in any state
• Any DEA investigation or action related to prescribing
• Any criminal charge or conviction
• Any civil judgment or settlement related to clinical care
• Any personal health condition — including substance use disorder or mental health condition — that could impair clinical judgment

Violations of this Code are evaluated by the Medical Director and, where appropriate, a clinical governance committee. Consequences are proportionate to the severity and nature of the violation. All investigations are conducted fairly and with the opportunity for the provider to respond.

Violation type	Examples	Severity	Typical consequence
Administrative	Late documentation, missed response deadlines, incomplete intake review	Low	Written notice, corrective action plan, performance review
Clinical quality	Substandard evaluation, inappropriate titration, missing contraindication review	Moderate	Mandatory retraining, supervised practice period, clinical audit
Conduct	Disrespectful patient communication, weight-stigmatizing language, boundary violations	Moderate	Formal investigation, corrective action, possible suspension
Prescribing misconduct	Prescribing to known contraindicated patient, volume-based prescribing, prescribing under another's credentials	High	Immediate suspension pending investigation; likely termination; possible board referral
HIPAA violation	Unauthorized PHI disclosure, failure to report breach, improper record access	High	Immediate suspension; termination; regulatory reporting as required by law
Fraud or falsification	Falsifying clinical records, fraudulent billing, impersonation	Critical	Immediate termination; referral to licensing board; law enforcement referral as appropriate

Due process

Except in cases requiring immediate suspension for patient safety, providers will receive written notice of a conduct investigation and the opportunity to respond before any adverse action is taken. Providers may request a review of any adverse decision by submitting a written appeal to the Medical Director within 14 days of the decision.

Questions about this Code, conduct concerns, and self-reporting obligations should be directed to our Medical Director. Confidential reporting of colleague misconduct may also be submitted anonymously through the process below.