Frequently Asked Questions

Access Membership is available nationwide. Lab draw locations are NOT available in AR, CT, HI, MA, NH, RI, however members from those states will have the option to have their blood drawn in an available nearby state.

Root is 100% Insurance-Free. No surprise bills. No co-pays. No deductibles. No co-insurance. Yes transparency, ease and affordability of testing. Root does not accept insurance or assist with any insurance claims, but Root is FSA/HSA eligible. Members receive itemized receipts for lab costs directly after purchase for submitting to an FSA/HSA plan.

Root is FSA/HSA eligible. Members can expect to receive an itemized receipt via e-mail with the order confirmation. Root does not provide a Tax ID number, medical diagnosis, or diagnostic codes. Reimbursement is not guaranteed. Please contact your FSA/HSA provider in advance to confirm terms of reimbursement

Your lab results will include opinions from our nationally leading functional medicine team. You can also find additional lab interpretation resources in the Root Community. If you have an abnormal result, you can download these results to discuss with your PCP or upgrade to the Premium Membership for a detailed lab review with a Root physician. Root doctors are board-certified and licensed MDs/DOs with expertise in both conventional and functional medicine. They excel at interpreting lab results through a functional medicine lens, focusing on what is optimal rather than just what is normal. 

Everything from our curated lab panels to our meal plans, educational videos, and monthly Root Talks is created by our in-house functional medicine doctors and dietitians. With years of experience working one-on-one with members to address health concerns at the root cause, many of our team members still actively work with Premium members today. We’ve seen it happen before—wellness company leaders becoming out of touch because they haven’t been hands-on for so long. That’s not us. We are in this field daily and stay on top of the latest research with in house Root functional medicine education and collaboration. 

Direct Communication: You can actually talk to us! Whether in the community or during monthly education sessions with our doctors, we’re here for you.

Labs Available: Root offers a blend of conventional blood draw labs and functional testing for advanced diagnostics you can do from home.

Lab Support: We don’t just leave you hanging with your labs. We provide interpretation resources to help you understand your results.

Upgrade Flexibility: If needed, you have the option to upgrade and work one-on-one with our doctors and dietitians.

Community and Resources: We offer an entire community filled with helpful resources, including easy-to-digest videos on functional medicine topics, full online courses (like Limbic System Retraining & Metabolism), and meal plans.

Customized Lab Panels: Our lab panels aren’t one-size-fits-all. You can choose what makes the most sense for your situation. For example, instead of spending $500 on the same panel that everyone gets (and parts that are not relevant for you), you could simply do a $75 thyroid panel to start! Then, benefit from the opinions and resources of top doctors and dietitians.

Individuals age 18 and older who live in the United States. (See FAQ on where Root is available). Access Members are part of the Root Community and must treat each other and our Root team with kindness and respect. 

Root has partnered with Quest Labs. You can find a draw center location here. Choose "all other labs" when searching for a location near you.

Root test kits can be collected at home and sent to the corresponding lab with the pre-paid shipping label included. 

Typically, within 2 weeks of completing your kit of blood draw your results will be available and 2-3 days after this, your results will have comments from the Root team visible on your dashboard.

No advanced testing availability: Primary Care and Conventional Providers do not have access to this level of advanced testing. Some of the labs they may have, but Root's catalog of functional testing far exceeds what conventional doctors are able to order. For example, a conventional stool test does not adequately evaluate the microbiome. Nutrient levels are often not offered, or if they are cost hundreds of dollars for each biomarker.

Costs guessing game: There is no way to know what your lab bill will end up being after being submitted to insurance. Most of our members who have tried this end up with bills over $2000 for the Root wellness panel.

Functional Medicine insights: The way labs levels are evaluated through a functional medicine lens is different. We go far beyond "normal/abnormal" and explain what the results mean and how they can be optimized. Root doctors have years of experience interpreting these labs and evaluating root causes. 

We have treated thousands of members at Root and our data shows that 98% of people improve their overall symptom score including symptoms for energy, gut health, joint pains, hormone balance, metabolism, skin, and more.

Being to multiple practitioners and "trying everything before" is very common before people sign up as new members. While it's definitely not a requirement to try different treatments before joining Root, nearly everyone tells us this before signing up. Yet we still help them. Why?

There are three conditions that we do not treat at Root (MCAS, active cancers, and Lyme disease). However, we've also helped people identify that they may have these conditions, and referred them to the appropriate specialist through our expansive Root network. 

Yes - we accept both HSA and FSA cards. It is important to note that we always recommend that our members reach out to these entities directly for questions, as guidelines can vary per your administrator. 

Labs: Labs are available at additional, transparent, lower pricing than insurance-based labs. A perk of being insurance-free is the availability of lower transparent pricing and NO surprise bills. Can you remember a time when you thought insurance was paying for testing, but instead you received a bill for thousands of dollars? That does not happen at Root.

Advanced functional medicine testing like gut microbiome, hormones, cortisol, mold, toxins, food sensitivity, breath testing, and much more are also available at direct transparent prices. Your doctor and dietitian team will be there for you to sort through the noise of what would actually be helpful in YOUR unique case and they will help you interpret those results and use the data to put a plan in action.  No more wasted time/money on tests that don't mean anything for you! Instead, you'll gain insights about your body from data you've never had access to before and a plan using that data.

Most people can plan on spending between zero and $500/year on additional lab testing.

Supplements: Root members are offered 15% off supplements & free shipping from the Root store, but are never required to purchase supplements from Root. These are offered to ensure quality, professional grade supplements that have been tried and tested in our practice (including measuring lab values for those taking our supplements!) as well as member convenience.

All visits with your functional medicine MD/DO and dietitian nutrionist are included at no additional cost or co-pay. You will be able to have your first appointment in the first month of your membership (unlike many other online practices!) You will see both the doctor and dietitian each month if you choose, and will be fully supported with direct messaging & community access between visits. 

What's Included:

Comprehensive 45-Minute virtual visits  with Both Doctor and Dietitian: You'll have 45 minutes face-to-face with each, totaling 1.5 hours. Additionally, we'll spend 30 minutes behind the scenes creating a personalized care plan just for you. This plan is designed to be both practical and easy to understand because we believe in "functional medicine you can actually do."

In-Depth Lab Review:  During your doctor visit, we’ll take the time to thoroughly review up to two lab panels through a functional medicine lens—focusing on 'what is optimal' versus 'what is normal.' Since our doctors are board-certified MDs and DOs, they can suggest medication when needed (which is less than 10% of the time) and provide lifestyle and supplement guidance to improve lab results. Please note: MRT results are exclusively reviewed by our dietitians.

Initial Wellness Plan: You'll receive a customized wellness plan that targets potential root causes and outlines how to optimize your labs.

Support from Registered Dietitian Nutritionists: Almost all labs we order have a nutritional component. Our dietitians will work with you to create a nutrition plan and set goals to optimize your labs and help you feel your best.

Send up to 5 portal messages per month: Connect with your care team for support and encouragement between visits.

Follow-Up Plan Based on Your Goals: While one month is a great option to have our team review your labs and get you started, healing is not linear. Most premium Root members require at least 3-6 months to optimize their health at the root cause.  Your care team will let you know what they suggest after your initial visits.

Root is an insurance-free practice. We work in partnership with you instead of your insurance company. This allows us to maintain transparency, a hassle-free and calming environment without anxiety about unknown bills. At Root, you are investing in your long-term health, and we spend the time needed to focus on you and prevention/reversal of illness. 

Transparency and authenticity are part of our core values, and we don't believe in just getting you in the door with the false premise that any of it may be covered by insurance, because, in our experience it usually isn't! This includes lab work. Root members have access to direct, insurance-free labs that help them save thousands of dollars in lab bills. You will always know the cost upfront so you can make an informed decision if you want to order your labs through Root.

We have treated thousands of members at Root and our data shows that 98% of people improve their overall symptom score including symptoms for energy, gut health, joint pains, hormone balance, metabolism, skin, and more.

Being to multiple practitioners and "trying everything before" is very common before people sign up as new members. While it's definitely not a requirement to try different treatments before joining Root, nearly everyone tells us this before signing up. Yet we still help them. Why?

There are three conditions that we do not treat at Root (MCAS, active cancers, and Lyme disease). However, we've also helped people identify that they may have these conditions, and referred them to the appropriate specialist through our expansive Root network. 

Yes - we accept both HSA and FSA cards. It is important to note that we always recommend that our members reach out to these entities directly for questions, as guidelines can vary per your administrator. 

Labs: Labs are available at additional, transparent, lower pricing than insurance-based labs. A perk of being insurance-free is the availability of lower transparent pricing and NO surprise bills. Can you remember a time when you thought insurance was paying for testing, but instead you received a bill for thousands of dollars? That does not happen at Root.

Advanced functional medicine testing like gut microbiome, hormones, cortisol, mold, toxins, food sensitivity, breath testing, and much more are also available at direct transparent prices. Your doctor and dietitian team will be there for you to sort through the noise of what would actually be helpful in YOUR unique case and they will help you interpret those results and use the data to put a plan in action.  No more wasted time/money on tests that don't mean anything for you! Instead, you'll gain insights about your body from data you've never had access to before and a plan using that data.

Most people can plan on spending between zero and $500/year on additional lab testing.

Supplements: Root members are offered 15% off supplements & free shipping from the Root store, but are never required to purchase supplements from Root. These are offered to ensure quality, professional grade supplements that have been tried and tested in our practice (including measuring lab values for those taking our supplements!) as well as member convenience.

All visits with your functional medicine MD/DO and dietitian nutrionist are included at no additional cost or co-pay. You will be able to have your first appointment in the first month of your membership (unlike many other online practices!) You will see both the doctor and dietitian each month if you choose, and will be fully supported with direct messaging & community access between visits. 

What's Included:

Root is a Functional Medicine specialty practice and not set up for primary care. We are happy to communicate any findings and treatment plans with your PCP with your permission. 

There are very few things that our processes at Root would not help. However, We do not treat MCAS, Lyme disease, or active cancers and would refer out to specialists for those conditions if we suspect that may be going on for you. 

Root doctors are functional medicine specialists and not available for same day or acute issues that would better be handled in Urgent Care or with PCP, like UTIs, acute viruses or infections, etc. We cannot replace primary care and are not able to do routine physicals and other insurance based orders like mammograms, etc.

We do not prescribe controlled substances such as narcotics or certain classes of anxiety or ADHD medications. Our membership would target these concerns naturally and can be a complement to other care for these conditions that you currently have in place.

All of our MD or DO physicians are board certified in family medicine or internal medicine and certified by the Institute of Functional Medicine (IFM). While there are other companies claiming to certify practitioners in functional medicine, IFM is the gold standard. IFM is the only organization providing functional medicine certification with educational programs directly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the governing body for official continuing education credits for physicians.

Our Dietitian Nutritionists have masters level nutrition training and additional advanced training and experience in functional nutrition.