Consent to Telehealth
Last updated: 1/12/2026
READ CAREFULLY. THIS TELEHEALTH PLATFORM CONSENT & DISCLOSURES (“PLATFORM CONSENT”) DESCRIBES COTTONBALL’S ROLE AS A TECHNOLOGY PLATFORM AND MERCHANT THAT FACILITATES ACCESS TO TELEHEALTH SERVICES PROVIDED BY BELUGA HEALTH, P.A. (“BELUGA”). COTTONBALL IS NOT A MEDICAL PROVIDER AND DOES NOT PROVIDE MEDICAL ADVICE, DIAGNOSIS, OR TREATMENT. BELUGA CLINICIANS PROVIDE ALL CLINICAL SERVICES, INCLUDING PRESCRIBING DECISIONS. THIS PLATFORM CONSENT IS INTENDED TO BE PRESENTED TO YOU AND AFFIRMATIVELY ACCEPTED AND MAY BE INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE INTO COTTONBALL’S TERMS OF SERVICE AND PRIVACY POLICY. BY CLICKING “I AGREE,” CHECKING A BOX, SIGNING ELECTRONICALLY, CREATING AN ACCOUNT, OR OTHERWISE USING COTTONBALL TO REQUEST TELEHEALTH-ENABLED PRESCRIPTION SKINCARE SERVICES, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE TO THIS PLATFORM CONSENT.
1) NOT FOR EMERGENCIES; EMERGENCY & SCOPE DISCLAIMER
NOT FOR EMERGENCIES. Cottonball and the services facilitated through Cottonball are not for emergencies or urgent conditions.
If you believe you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.
For mental health crisis support in the U.S., call or text 988.
Cottonball cannot connect you to 911, dispatch emergency services, or monitor you in real time.
Telehealth is not appropriate for every condition. Beluga clinicians may direct you to in-person care, urgent care, or emergency services when clinically appropriate.
2) ROLE OF COTTONBALL
You understand and agree:
Cottonball is a technology platform and merchant that facilitates access to telehealth services offered by Beluga and supports certain non-clinical functions (platform access, account tools, identity verification, communications, payment/subscription administration, and fulfillment logistics).
Cottonball is not a physician practice, clinic, hospital, pharmacy, or insurer.
Cottonball does not practice medicine and does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
Cottonball does not prescribe medications and does not make clinical decisions.
All clinical decisions (including whether to treat you, what to prescribe, and whether telehealth is appropriate) are made solely by Beluga and its licensed clinicians.
3) RELATIONSHIP STRUCTURE
You acknowledge and agree:
Any provider–patient relationship created by telehealth services is between you and Beluga (and the treating clinician), not Cottonball.
Cottonball has a separate customer relationship with you for platform access and non-clinical services, which may include:
account creation, identity verification, and fraud prevention,
communications and notifications,
payment processing and subscription administration (if applicable),
facilitating fulfillment/shipping coordination (if applicable), and
customer support for platform issues.
Nothing in this Platform Consent creates a provider–patient relationship between you and Cottonball.
4) TELEHEALTH FORMS & LIMITATIONS
Telehealth refers to healthcare services delivered remotely through electronic communications. Telehealth services facilitated through Cottonball may be delivered by Beluga through one or more modalities:
Asynchronous Telehealth (Store-and-Forward)
: you submit health history, questionnaires, messages, and/or photos for later review by a clinician.
Synchronous Telehealth (Real-Time)
: a live interaction such as video, audio-only (where permitted), or real-time messaging (if offered).
Limitations of telehealth include:
no hands-on physical exam,
reliance on information you submit (including photo quality and completeness),
potential need for in-person evaluation, testing, labs, imaging, or referral,
limitations caused by your environment, device, lighting, camera quality, and connectivity.
Beluga clinicians may determine telehealth is not appropriate and may decline to treat or may require in-person care.
5) RISKS & LIMITATIONS OF TELEHEALTH TECHNOLOGY
You understand and accept that using telehealth and electronic platforms involves risks and limitations, including:
Technical failures and interruptions: outages, dropped connections, app/device malfunction, system downtime, or maintenance.
Delays: delays in transmission, receipt, or review of messages, forms, images, or notifications.
Image and data quality issues: blurry/poorly lit photos or incomplete information may prevent adequate assessment and may require resubmission or in-person care.
Security and privacy risks: no system is 100% secure; risks increase if your device, email, or phone is shared, compromised, or unsecured.
Misdelivery: messages may be delivered to the wrong person if your contact information is inaccurate or if others have access to your device/accounts.
6) YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES
You agree to:
provide accurate, complete, and current information (including medical history, symptoms, medications, allergies),
submit clear, high-quality photos when requested (proper lighting, angles, and focus; no filters unless instructed),
monitor your account and messages/notifications and respond to follow-up questions promptly,
update your email, phone number, address, and other account information promptly,
follow Beluga clinician instructions and seek in-person care when advised.
You understand that incomplete or inaccurate information may cause delays, reduce the quality or safety of assessment, or lead Beluga to decline treatment.
7) IDENTITY & LOCATION VERIFICATION
Telehealth is regulated on a state-by-state basis, and clinicians must be appropriately licensed/authorized where you are located at the time of the encounter.
You consent to Cottonball (and/or its service providers) performing reasonable verification, which may include:
Identity verification (including requesting government ID upload and/or using third-party verification tools), and
Location confirmation (confirming the state—and where required, additional location details—at the time you request or receive services).
You agree not to misrepresent your identity or location.
8) INFORMATION SHARING, AUTHORIZATIONS & PRIVACY
To operate the platform and facilitate the services you request, you authorize Cottonball to collect, use, and share information you provide (including health-related information submitted through the platform) with:
Beluga and its clinicians (for clinical review and telehealth services),
independent third-party pharmacies that dispense prescriptions issued by Beluga clinicians,
fulfillment/shipping vendors and logistics providers (as applicable),
payment processors and billing vendors (as applicable), and
service providers supporting Cottonball operations (hosting, analytics, customer support, identity verification, fraud prevention, communications vendors).
Pharmacy fulfillment. Prescriptions, if issued, are filled and dispensed by independent, third-party pharmacies. Cottonball may facilitate transmission of prescription/fulfillment information and coordinate shipping and related customer support. Cottonball does not own, control, or have any financial ownership interest in the pharmacies that dispense your prescription.
Cottonball’s data practices are described in:
Privacy Policy: https://www.cottonball.com/legal/privacy
You are responsible for securing your device, credentials, and access to your email/SMS accounts.
9) NO GUARANTEE OF TREATMENT OR PRESCRIPTION
You understand and agree:
Beluga clinicians may determine telehealth is not appropriate, may request more information, may require in-person care, or may decline to treat.
There is no guarantee you will receive a diagnosis, prescription, medication, or desired outcome.
Prescriptions (if any) are issued solely at Beluga clinicians’ discretion and subject to applicable law and clinical judgment.
Cottonball does not control or override clinical decisions.
10) NOT A SUBSTITUTE FOR PRIMARY CARE
Telehealth-enabled services are supplemental and do not replace:
a primary care provider relationship,
routine preventive care and screenings, or
comprehensive in-person exams when needed.
You are encouraged to maintain a primary care provider and seek in-person care when appropriate.
11) WITHDRAWAL OF CONSENT (PLATFORM) & CONSEQUENCES
You may withdraw your consent to this Platform Consent by discontinuing use of the platform and/or contacting Cottonball at support@cottonball.com.
If you withdraw:
you may lose access to Cottonball’s telehealth facilitation features and be unable to request services through Cottonball,
pending requests may be canceled or interrupted, and
you remain responsible for obligations already incurred (e.g., charges already processed), as permitted by law and consistent with Cottonball’s Terms of Service.
Withdrawal of this Platform Consent does not automatically withdraw any separate consent you provide to Beluga.
12) LIMITATION OF COTTONBALL LIABILITY
To the maximum extent permitted by law, you agree that Cottonball is not liable for, and you release Cottonball from claims arising from or related to:
technology failures, service interruptions, delays, or transmission errors,
your device/connectivity/environment (camera quality, lighting, privacy),
your failure to read/respond to messages or follow instructions,
incomplete/inaccurate information or images you submit,
unauthorized access caused by your failure to safeguard your device/credentials,
clinical decisions and outcomes determined by Beluga clinicians (including denial of treatment or prescriptions), and
acts/omissions of third parties (including pharmacies, carriers, payment processors, and fulfillment vendors), except to the extent Cottonball is legally responsible for such acts or omissions under applicable law.
Nothing in this section limits liability that cannot be limited under applicable law.
13) STATE TELEHEALTH NOTICES AND OPEN PAYMENTS NOTICE
Telehealth laws and required notices vary by state. Cottonball is a technology platform and not a medical provider; this section addresses common consumer-facing notice themes relevant to telehealth-facilitated services.
(a) Complaints and consumer concerns
Clinical care complaints (medical decisions, prescriptions, clinician conduct): contact Beluga and/or your state medical board (or other licensing authority).
Platform complaints (billing, subscriptions, shipping/fulfillment logistics, technical support, account issues): contact Cottonball at support@cottonball.com.
(b) Medical records access
Clinical records are created/maintained by Beluga (or its designee) and are subject to applicable medical record access laws.
Platform/account records (account info, transaction history, platform communications) may be maintained by Cottonball consistent with its policies and legal obligations.
(c) Right to refuse telehealth
You may refuse telehealth and seek in-person care. Refusal may prevent remote services from being provided.
(d) Identity and location
You may be required to confirm identity and physical location at the time services are requested/provided because clinician authorization is generally state-based.
(e) No recording without consent
Do not record audio/video of any telehealth interaction unless permitted by applicable law and you have obtained any required consents.
(f) Open Payments Notice
The federal Open Payments program is a public database that includes certain payments and other transfers of value from pharmaceutical and medical device companies to physicians and teaching hospitals. You may search the database at [https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov]. If you are located in California, California law may require that physicians provide notice about the Open Payments database. Cottonball provides this notice for informational purposes; medical care is provided by Beluga clinicians, and any applicable provider posting/notice obligations are addressed by the medical provider and/or its clinicians.
14) AGENCY AUTHORITY; ACKNOWLEDGMENT & ACCEPTANCE
Agency authority. If you use Cottonball to request services for another person (e.g., a minor dependent, or someone for whom you are a legal guardian or authorized representative), you represent and warrant that you have the legal authority to act on their behalf, to share their information through the platform, and to accept this Platform Consent for them as permitted by law.
By clicking “I Agree” (or equivalent), you acknowledge that:
You have read and understand this Platform Consent.
You understand Cottonball is a technology platform and merchant, not a medical provider.
You consent to Cottonball facilitating access to telehealth services provided by Beluga, including the collection/use/sharing of information as described above.
You consent to electronic communications as described (including SMS/MMS and automated communications where applicable).
You understand this Platform Consent is separate from any clinical consent you provide to Beluga.
Appendix A — Consumer Resources (All States)
Cottonball (Platform Support): support@cottonball.com
Beluga (Clinical Support / Records Requests): admin@belugahealth.com
State Medical Board Directory (complaints + board contacts): https://www.fsmb.org/contact-a-state-medical-board/
Physician license lookup (DocInfo by FSMB): https://www.docinfo.org/
Open Payments Database: https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov