Frequently Asked Questions
About Elektra
Elektra combines world-class clinical care with a private membership platform to become your go-to resource for menopause care, support, education, and community…everything you need to thrive during this 8-10 year transition (and beyond!).
Step 1: Schedule a visit with one of our board-certified clinicians.
Step 2: Complete a menopause assessment identifying your top symptoms, burning menopause questions, health history, and goals.
Step 3: After your 30-minute visit, you’ll receive a personalized care plan so you know the steps needed to start feeling better (labs and prescriptions ordered, if needed).
Step 4: Join Elektra’s membership platform to get access to Elektra’s library of menopause education and invites to virtual, member-only events. As a member, you’ll also get paired 1:1 with an Elektra Guide for support, lifestyle education, and goal setting.
Step 5: Get ongoing support from your care team (clinician & Guide) to start feeling better, faster!
Clinical Care
General
If you’re experiencing symptoms related to the menopause transition, then Elektra is probably for you (with a few exceptions for, like new cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and anyone taking hormones for fertility or gender-affirming care). Sometimes, people may be experiencing symptoms that aren’t due to menopause; in those cases, Elektra providers may refer you to in-person care with another provider.
Nope, Elektra is designed to complement but not replace your local care. Since we don’t do in-person visits (just telemedicine), it’s important for you to continue your care with a local gynecologist and/or primary care provider for regular pelvic exams, issues that require a physical evaluation, and any non-menopause concerns.
Looking for a new provider for in-person care? Elektra clinicians can provide referrals as needed.
Booking is easy and can be done entirely online here.
You’ll be asked to complete a comprehensive health history form, which can take up to 15 minutes. Heads up that we’ll ask you to upload photos of your ID and insurance card, payment information, and results of any recent lab work and/or imaging (breast, pelvic, etc), so it helps to have that handy when booking.
Elektra’s providers are board-certified physicians (MDs) and nurse practitioners (NPs) with specialized menopause training and certifications. They work closely with Elektra’s founding physician, Dr. Anna Barbieri, a board-certified OB-GYN and integrative medicine provider.
Life happens…we totally get it! We just ask that you cancel or reschedule your appointment (via text or the patient portal) more than 24 hours in advance to avoid incurring a $50 charge. If you’re late to your visit, you may incur a fee and will likely be asked to reschedule your appointment (we want to be sure your provider has enough time to spend with you!).
Elektra’s membership platform is where you’ll find all our educational materials. It also serves as a private community for you to connect with like-minded women and join member-only virtual events.
Members also get paired 1:1 with an Elektra Guide (aka a “menopause doula”) who serves as a key member of your care team. Your Guide can offer personalized education about menopause and lifestyle interventions, help put your care plan into action, and provide support/accountability.
While you do not need to be a member in order to see an Elektra provider, we do ask that all patients join Elektra’s platform after their clinical visit. See below for more information on membership.
Coverage & treatment
At the moment, Elektra is licensed to see patients for clinical care in Connecticut, New York, Florida, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania…with more coming soon! Not in those states? Sign up for our weekly newsletter to stay in the loop on all things menopause and be the first to know when we expand access.
Elektra providers can treat most menopause symptoms, including hot flashes, sleep concerns, fatigue, vaginal dryness/painful sex, and more.
Elektra follows an integrative, evidence-based approach closely adhering to guidelines set forth by The Menopause Society (formerly The North American Menopause Society). This includes the use of FDA-approved hormonal and non-hormonal medications. Our providers are also versed in evidence-based integrative approaches (e.g., supplements and lifestyle interventions).
While Elektra providers may order labs as appropriate, they do not order saliva or urine-based testing (i.e. DUTCH test).
Elektra providers can prescribe FDA-approved medications (both hormonal and non-hormonal) and recommend evidence-based supplements. All prescriptions will be sent to your preferred pharmacy — we don’t sell them directly.
If you’re up to date on your follow-ups, then we’d be happy to refill your medication without seeing you for a visit. (Typically, once you’re on medication and a stable dose has been established, we ask to see you for a follow-up every 6 months.)
While there is no definitive test for menopause, we often use bloodwork to contextualize symptoms and rule out other conditions (e.g., thyroid dysfunction, diabetes). We look at levels of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), testosterone, vitamin D, vitamin B12, and more.
For prescriptions…we can prescribe all forms of non-hormonal AND hormone therapy, including patches, pills, rings, sprays, and gels. We prescribe FDA-approved systemic hormone therapy (most of which is bioidentical) and can prescribe oral contraceptive pills as hormone therapy. To treat sexual dysfunction, we prescribe local vaginal hormone therapy (creams, suppositories, tablets, rings), as well as FDA-approved treatments for hypoactive sexual desire disorder such as flibanserin (Addyi) and bremelanotide (Vylessi).
We don’t prescribe compounded or non-FDA-approved medications. Also, while weight management is a common challenge among patients in this phase of life, Elektra is not currently providing medical weight loss management.
Elektra providers can prescribe both hormonal AND non-hormonal prescription treatments as well as evidence-backed supplements.
BIlling & insurance
Yes! Elektra is in-network with select insurance plans and actively working to expand coverage with others. Currently, our care services are covered by EmblemHealth, WellCare NY, WellCare CT, Aetna CT, Anthem BlueCross NY, Anthem BlueCross CT, ConnectiCare, Medicaid NY, Medicare NY, and Medicare CT.
We also accept out-of-pocket patients and can provide a superbill you can submit to your insurance carrier for out-of-network reimbursement. And remember, even if Elektra isn’t covered by your insurance plan, your labs and medications likely will be.
If you’re in-network with Elektra, you’ll just have to pay the cost of your regular copay or coinsurance. If you’re out-of-network, the cash pay price is $249 for your first two visits (both 30 minutes), followed by $149 for subsequent 15-minute visits.
Yep, you can use your HSA or FSA card to pay for Elektra care visits!
If you join Elektra as a telemedicine care patient, membership is free for all of 2024! (Typically, it costs $30/month.)
Membership
General
With an Elektra membership, you’ll get access to:
- Evidence-based educational readings and videos on symptoms, supplements, HRT & more
- A supportive community and invites to member-only virtual events
- 30-minute educational video visits with your Elektra Guide (aka “menopause doula”) who will prepare a personalized wellness plan for you with symptom-specific education, lifestyle interventions, and more
- Unlimited messaging for ongoing support (and accountability!) from your Elektra Guide
Menopause is complicated! And most of us (through no fault of our own) simply aren’t aware of what’s happening to our body during this transition. Most providers lack any training in menopause and others simply don’t spend time on it during a visit. Elektra is different. All Elektra patients get assigned a care team with a board-certified clinician AND a Guide. This way, you can get the holistic and ongoing care and support you deserve.
Support
Elektra Guides are healthcare professionals you can think of as part-accountability partners, part-menopause doulas. They work 1:1 with members to help them feel educated and empowered during their menopause journey, which comes to life in the form of symptom-specific education, lifestyle interventions, supplement information, and product recommendations. If you’re a telemedicine patient, your Guide can also help put your care plan into action.
The menopause transition can be overwhelming, daunting, and lonely. And we also know that it’s different for everyone. That’s why, to meet you where YOU’RE at, we offer two forms of expert support: Guides & clinicians.
Our board-certified clinicians provide telemedicine care in select states and can order labs and prescribe as needed. Guides, on the other hand, can see members in all states and provide non-clinical support in the form of 1:1 education, lifestyle interventions, supplement information, and product recommendations.
You can schedule as many video calls as you’d like with your Elektra Guide…it’s included in your membership! You also have the option of talking to your Guide via chat/email.
billing
While calls with your Elektra Guide are included in the cost of membership, clinical care visits are an extra fee.
To cancel, simply email [email protected] and we’ll get that sorted for you ASAP. (We’re sad to see you go, but we hope it’s because your symptoms have resolved and you’re feeling great!)
Leaving the community does NOT automatically cancel your membership. In order to do so, please email [email protected].
Shoot us a note at [email protected], and we’ll let you know!