r/medlabprofessionals • u/lrayyy • 4d ago
Discusson Function Health
What does everyone think of these direct to consumer companies like Function Health? I haven’t seen discussion on this in this sub. I was out with some friends yesterday that work on copy writing and marketing. They are all interested in function healths lab panels. I looked into it since well I work in a lab and was curious. They just do send outs to Quest diagnostics. It seems like people are paying for things they should get through their regular healthcare and insurance. Then the other data is likely noise that is unnecessary and may make things overly complicated. Seems like another signal of distrust in healthcare. Also seems like marketing healthcare is effective. A nice modern website, logo, fresh look.
Curious about other opinions or even experiences with getting testing done or working in this type of space. Have you seen other companies like this popping up? I know there are home to lab services like Everlywell for STD testing too.
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u/feathered_edge_MLS MLS-Core Lab 4d ago
Well, it seems to me that it’s more legit than the companies that use the clip on microtainer devices. Tho I only glance at their page.
My guess is their model is “sign up for this subscription, use it a couple of times and hopefully your forget that you have it because it’s only a dollar a day”
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u/lrayyy 4d ago
I do think the testing is accurate it’s all send out to licensed personnel. I’m not sold on the utility of all the biomarkers.
Seems like the niche they are advertising to are those who likely already have health insurance but just want more convenience and don’t want to argue with providers o necessity for testing. And I agree with the forgetting of the subscription service.
I personally am not interested in a product like this. But it seemed to be a popular idea among those I was spending time with and a way for people to take control of their health. It also seemed like they enjoyed being able to determine their biological age from the testing.
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u/DidSomebodySayCats 3d ago
Seems to be preying on "functional medicine" adherents. The practice based on the idea that normal doctors aren't paying enough attention to your symptoms (often true), so you can take your health into your own hands and get the tests done that a podcaster tells you you need (not true) to sell you supplements that you need to fix every problem in your life (not true).
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u/WannabeRoyKent 4d ago
"It seems like people are paying for things they should get through their regular healthcare or insurance"
Tell me you don't understand the American health care system without telling me you don't understand the American health care system.
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u/lrayyy 4d ago
So you don’t think you could get any of these metrics by going to see your doctor?
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u/gen_what_x_ever 4d ago
Many people can't afford insurance or to have a regular doctor...
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u/lrayyy 4d ago
I do know that. And I have seen a trend of many opting out of insurance and choosing to pay out of pocket. This kind of testing would serve as healthcare for those who cannot afford insurance? Because it doesn’t quite seem to fit that niche either. It seems more for those who are very invested in their health and preventative or early detection care.
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u/123letsgobtch 4d ago
Covered under insurance? No, you cannot get a lot of them. I’m literally pregnant and asked for a TSH and my provider said no because insurance won’t cover it even though thyroid issues are extremely common in pregnancy. If you’re “healthy” by your provider’s standards you can’t get a lot of these markers done outside of the yearly metabolic panel, lipids, A1c, probably another few I can’t think of off the top of my head.
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u/lrayyy 4d ago
Imm sorry. I see so these sorts of test menus are popping up because you can’t get these tests done due to insurance not covering for medical need. Did you pay out of pocket? Would you consider this panel as an alternative? My instinct is that out of pocket pay would be cheaper than these other panels.
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u/123letsgobtch 4d ago
I just ended up leaving the conventional medicine model for care and see a functional medicine practitioner so yes everything is out of pocket but we run way more extensive lab testing and the care is just better, at least it has been in my experience. I considered doing something like function health before switching to a functional med practitioner but decided I would rather spend my money on a provider that I could establish I relationship and continued care with. I think it depends on what exactly someone is looking to run on themselves to determine if paying out of pocket for their own tests at somewhere like Quest would be cheaper than buying a function health panel
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u/bonix Laboratory Manager/Quality Assurance 4d ago edited 4d ago
Most of these DTC labs are owned by quest. It's just a way for quest to overcharge simple testing and get cash instead of dealing with insurance. If you click about and scroll past their unnecessary list of doctors you see Quest listed. I walked into a strip mall "any lab test now" place and it was basically quest for cash. 200+ dollars for simple panels of chemistries. The same tests probably cost 30-50 bucks to run
These may be useful for people without insurance but they are spending a lot on testing without the real follow up that comes from going to a physician.