MENTAL HEALTH BRANDS

Launch a mental health brand on Tessic Health

Tessic Health runs the clinic behind a mental health brand. Licensed providers evaluate by video and manage medication in all 50 states, generic prescriptions fill at wholesale cost, and patients buy through a storefront with your name on it. The protocol is built around screening, safety planning and steady follow-up, the parts of the category that regulators and ad platforms look at hardest.

50

States with licensed providers

Video

First visit for every patient

0

Controlled substances in the standard protocol

$25

Flat per completed consult

CLINICAL

What your mental health patients get

Mental health programs pair a video evaluation with scored screening and close follow-up, run by providers credentialed under your brand.

  1. 01

    Screening before the visit

    Patients complete the PHQ-9 for depression and the GAD-7 for anxiety at intake, so the provider starts the visit with a scored baseline.

  2. 02

    A video evaluation first

    Every new patient meets a provider by video for a full evaluation before any prescription is written.

  3. 03

    Suicide-risk screening at every visit

    Intake and every follow-up screen for suicide risk. A positive screen is escalated to a provider, and the patient is given the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and emergency options.

  4. 04

    Close follow-up early on

    Antidepressants take weeks to work and carry a boxed warning about suicidal thoughts in people under 25. Follow-ups run every four to six weeks until the dose is stable, with scores rechecked each time.

  5. 05

    Medication management

    Tessic's providers manage medication. Brands that want talk therapy alongside it contract licensed therapists separately.

  6. 06

    Referral for complex conditions

    Bipolar disorder, psychosis, eating disorders and substance use disorders are referred to in-person psychiatric treatment.

MEDICATIONS & PROTOCOLS

What your providers can prescribe

Mental health programs on Tessic start from the generic medications below. Providers choose among them for each patient after a video evaluation.

MedicationFormUsed forHow it is filled
Sertraline, escitalopram, fluoxetineDaily tablet or capsuleDepression and anxiety (SSRIs)Retail or mail-order generic
Venlafaxine, duloxetineDaily capsuleDepression and anxiety (SNRIs)Retail or mail-order generic
BupropionDaily tabletDepressionRetail or mail-order generic
BuspironeTablet, twice dailyGeneralized anxietyRetail or mail-order generic
HydroxyzineTablet, as neededShort-term anxiety reliefRetail or mail-order generic
PropranololTablet, as neededPerformance anxiety, off-labelRetail or mail-order generic
TrazodoneNightly tabletTrouble sleeping, off-labelRetail or mail-order generic
MirtazapineNightly tabletDepression with poor sleep or appetiteRetail or mail-order generic

Left off the list on purpose

Each of these would put the brand's ad accounts, payment accounts or medical licenses at risk.

  • ADHD stimulants

    Adderall, Vyvanse and other Schedule II stimulants are outside the standard protocol. They depend on DEA telemedicine rules and state law, and the category's largest enforcement actions have involved them.

  • Benzodiazepines and controlled sleep drugs

    Alprazolam, clonazepam, zolpidem and other controlled medications are not prescribed through the standard protocol.

  • Ketamine and esketamine

    Esketamine (Spravato) has to be given in a certified health care setting under an FDA safety program, and at-home ketamine is not offered.

Every prescription is the treating provider's decision after an individual evaluation, and a listing here does not mean every patient qualifies. Off-label means FDA has not approved the drug for that use; providers may still prescribe it when clinically appropriate.

PHARMACY

How the medicine gets to patients

Every medication in the standard protocol is an inexpensive generic, so the pharmacy side is simple and the margin stays with the brand.

01

Mail order or local pickup

Patients fill by mail through the pharmacy network at wholesale cost, or send the prescription to a pharmacy near them.

02

90-day fills once stable

Once a dose is stable, 90-day fills lower the cost per month and make a missed refill less likely.

03

Standard e-prescribing

With no controlled substances in the standard protocol, prescriptions run over standard eRx with no DEA-scheduled handling.

04

Plain packaging

Mail-order fills ship at room temperature in plain packaging.

0%

Markup on every fill, on every plan

The brand is billed the pharmacy's wholesale invoice. Tessic adds nothing to the medication and takes no share of what the brand charges patients.

COMPLIANCE & ADVERTISING

The rules for selling mental health treatment

What regulators and ad platforms check before a mental health brand can sell and advertise.

What regulators check

  1. 01

    Crisis steps are required

    A mental health clinic needs documented suicide-risk screening, escalation and crisis referral, followed at every visit.

  2. 02

    Controlled substances stay out

    Prescribing controlled substances by telehealth without an in-person visit runs on DEA flexibilities currently extended through December 31, 2026, with a permanent rule still pending. Keeping controlled substances out of the standard protocol keeps the brand clear of the category's biggest enforcement risk.

  3. 03

    Substance use records

    Substance use disorder treatment records carry extra federal confidentiality rules under 42 CFR Part 2. Substance use treatment is outside the standard protocol.

  4. 04

    Antidepressant warnings

    The boxed warning about suicidal thoughts in people under 25 has to reach patients before they start, and marketing cannot suggest the medicines are risk-free.

What ad platforms check

  1. 01

    Keep health data out of ad pixels

    The FTC has taken action against BetterHelp and Cerebral for sharing mental health information with advertising platforms. Conversion tracking has to carry no health details, from intake answers to visit types.

  2. 02

    Talk about the service, never the viewer

    "Feeling anxious?" and "Are you depressed?" break Meta's personal-attributes rule. Ads describe the service and the provider evaluation.

  3. 03

    No targeting by condition

    Meta removed detailed targeting options based on health conditions, so audiences come from broad targeting and first-party lists the brand has consent to use.

  4. 04

    No promises of fast relief

    Copy like "feel better in days" misstates how antidepressants work and invites FTC attention.

Rules for every category

  • LegitScript certification

    Google, Meta and the major card processors check for LegitScript certification before a telehealth brand can advertise prescription treatment or take card payments. Tessic prepares and files the application as part of setup.

  • Subscription billing

    The Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act requires the recurring price and terms to be clear before checkout, the buyer's express consent to the charge, and a simple way to cancel.

  • Health data and ad pixels

    Tracking pixels that pass health information to ad platforms have drawn FTC and HHS enforcement. Conversion tracking on a clinic site has to keep intake answers and diagnoses out of what reaches Meta and Google.

  • Proof behind every claim

    The FTC expects competent and reliable scientific evidence behind health claims, and testimonials have to reflect what typical patients experience.

Rules checked September 2026. A planning summary, not legal advice. Rules change, LegitScript sets its own review schedule, and certification is never guaranteed. The brand's own counsel should review its marketing before launch.

LAUNCH TIMELINE

How fast your clinic opens

Mental health brands open within a week. Video visit capacity is set before launch so the first patients are seen quickly.

  1. Day 0

    Discovery call

    The brand picks its programs, price points and launch states, and whether to pair medication with therapy it contracts separately.

  2. Days 1-3

    Clinic build

    Providers are credentialed under the brand, the scored intake and crisis steps are loaded, and the storefront goes up. Tessic prepares the LegitScript application.

  3. Days 3-5

    Scheduling and test orders

    Video visit scheduling opens, pharmacy routes are connected, and test orders run from intake through a visit to a delivered prescription.

  4. Days 5-7

    First patients

    The clinic opens to patients from the brand's own channels.

  5. After certification

    Paid ads

    Once LegitScript certification clears, campaigns can run with conversion tracking that carries no health data.

Timelines assume the brand's name, domain and pricing are ready at the discovery call.

UNIT ECONOMICS

What one patient is worth

A sample model for one patient on a monthly medication management plan at $95 a month. The brand sets the price, medication passes through at wholesale, and Tessic's only per-patient fee is $25 per completed consult.

Program price, set by the brand
$95.00
Generic SSRI, 30 days, at wholesale (assumed)
$6.00
Provider consults: 6 a year at $25, spread monthly
$12.50
Shipping (assumed)
$4.00
Card processing (3% of price, assumed)
$2.85
Contribution per patient, monthly73% of price, before marketing
$69.65

15

Patients to cover the Launch plan's $1,000 monthly fee

29

Patients to cover the Grow plan's $2,000 monthly fee

115

Patient-months to earn back the $8,000 Launch setup fee

$12.50

Tessic's monthly fee on this patient, against $11.30 on a 30% markup and 10% revenue-share model

Illustrative only, not a quote or a forecast. The brand sets its own prices; lines marked assumed are sample costs, and the real pharmacy invoice passes through at 0% markup. Contribution is before marketing, the monthly platform fee and taxes. The comparison model applies a 30% medication markup and a 10% revenue share, within the range commonly seen in white-label agreements.

COMMON QUESTIONS

Questions about launching a mental health brand

  • Not through the standard protocol. Stimulants are Schedule II controlled substances, and prescribing them by telehealth depends on DEA rules and state law. The standard protocol covers anxiety, depression and sleep with non-controlled generics.

  • Yes. Every new mental health patient meets a provider by video for a full evaluation before any prescription, with scored screening completed beforehand.

  • Suicide-risk screening runs at intake and every follow-up. A positive screen is escalated to a provider, and the patient is directed to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and emergency services.

  • Yes, as long as no health information reaches the ad platforms. The FTC has taken action against mental health companies whose pixels shared that data, so tracking carries events without intake answers or visit details.

  • The plan's flat monthly fee, $25 per completed consult, and nothing on the medication. Tessic takes no revenue share, so steady follow-up visits are the only variable fee.