Before the visit
Ask what the visit fee includes. Find out whether the person treating you will review your records and whether any tests cost extra.
For a remote visit, ask how to send records and how the conversation will take place. Choose a setting where you can talk freely.
The assessment comes before the choice
As of October 3, 2026, an Arizona medical doctor, called an MD, usually needs an exam or an established doctor-patient relationship before prescribing. An established relationship means the doctor already knows you through your medical care. [a]
The law has exceptions that differ by profession. If the doctor says an exception applies, ask which one and how it applies to your care.
An exam that meets your medical needs can happen by telehealth, meaning care from a distance. Sending a request through a website does not replace the doctor’s required assessment of your health. [a]
Ask what the person treating you has learned about your health. Ask why the proposed treatment fits what they found.
Ask what needs to happen in person
In Arizona, deciding if remote care meets your needs is the treating person’s duty, as of October 3, 2026. They must consider how you will communicate. [b]
The Federation of State Medical Boards brings together medical regulators and offers guidance about necessary tests and exams. It says the doctor must carry them out, arrange them or send you to someone who can. [c]
This is professional guidance, not a national law. The source was checked on September 17, 2026. [c]
Ask who will arrange any next step. Get the plan in words you can repeat back.
Leave with a follow-up plan
Ask when the next review is and how to raise a new concern. Find out who answers between visits.
Keep the care plan and the payment terms together. If a point is unclear, mark it on the question list.