Lyme disease prevention
Expert care after
a tick bite.
A single dose of doxycycline after a high-risk tick bite, when a clinician judges it appropriate. Start with a free pre-screen; you only pay if online care fits your situation.
Answer a few questions about the bite. We’ll tell you whether Tickortreat may be appropriate for your situation, and if it is, you can continue to a licensed clinician for review. If it isn’t, we’ll tell you that too, and you won’t have paid anything.
Planned 2027 launch area: VT · NH · ME · MA · CT · NY*
*New York launch pending regulatory authorization.
How it works
Three steps, and you know the cost before any of them.
Tell us what happened
About the bite: where you were, when you removed the tick, how long you think it was attached, and some brief medical history. Takes a few minutes.
Free · no paymentSee what comes next
We’ll let you know whether to continue to online care, seek care in person, or simply keep an eye on things. If online care isn’t right for you, you’ve paid nothing.
Free · no paymentClinician review
If you continue, a licensed clinician reviews what you submitted and decides whether preventive treatment is appropriate. When it is, a prescription is sent to your pharmacy. No appointment required.
$75 · charged onceWhat gets prescribed
Tickortreat evaluates recent tick bites for Lyme disease prevention. When preventive treatment is appropriate, the standard is a single dose of doxycycline, taken after the bite and before any symptoms develop. For children the dose is based on weight. It is not treatment for an infection you already have.
The approach follows the 2020 national Lyme disease guidelines from the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the American Academy of Neurology and the American College of Rheumatology.
You don’t need to identify the tick yourself. Most people can’t reliably tell one species from another, and an unidentified tick doesn’t stop you starting the pre-screen. We’ll ask when you found it, how long it may have been attached, where the exposure happened, and about symptoms, medications and allergies.
A licensed clinician makes the final decision about whether preventive treatment is appropriate.
The 72-hour window matters
Preventive treatment, where it applies, needs to begin within 72 hours of the tick being removed. That’s why it’s worth starting the free pre-screen early rather than waiting to see how you feel.
Clinician review
$75
One flat charge. Only if you’re eligible and choose to continue.
- • No insurance needed, and none accepted
- • No subscription, no membership, no account for the free pre-screen
- • No separate charge for a prescription
- • Superbill provided, to submit to your insurer if your plan allows
- • PDF of your clinical encounter, yours to keep or share with your doctor
- • Usable with an HSA or FSA
Why cash-pay
Running this outside insurance is what lets the price be a single number you can see before you start. There’s no deductible to meet, no claim to file, no bill arriving six weeks later for an amount nobody mentioned.
It also means the cost is the cost. If you’re uninsured or carrying a high deductible, $75 is often less than what an urgent care visit would run you, and you find out whether you qualify before spending anything at all.
Not accepting insurance isn’t the same as shutting you out of it. We provide a superbill, the itemized receipt with the codes an insurer needs, so you can submit the visit yourself. Some plans reimburse out-of-network care and some don’t, and we can’t tell you in advance which yours will do.
The tradeoff is still real and we’d rather say it: you pay up front, and reimbursement isn’t guaranteed. If you have a primary care practice that can see you inside the 72-hour window, that may cost you less, and we’d tell you to use it.
What you keep afterward
A superbill
An itemized receipt carrying the diagnosis and procedure codes an insurer looks for. If your plan covers out-of-network care, you can submit it yourself. Whether it’s reimbursed is between you and your insurer, and we can’t promise either way.
A PDF of your clinical encounter
The full record of the visit: what you reported, what the clinician concluded, and what was prescribed. It’s yours to keep. Share it with your primary care doctor if you want it in your regular chart, or keep it in case symptoms show up weeks later and somebody asks what happened.
Both are available whether or not treatment was prescribed.
Who this is for
The pre-screen works all of this out for you. It’s here so you can see the shape of it first.
Tickortreat may be a good fit if
- You found a tick attached to you or your child
- The tick was removed within the last 72 hours
- The bite happened in an area where Lyme disease occurs
- You’re physically located in our launch area when the visit is reviewed
- You don’t currently have symptoms suggesting an active tick-borne illness
Not a fit if
- You already have symptoms, such as a rash, fever or aches — that needs diagnosis, not prevention
- More than 72 hours have passed since removal
- You want treatment for a tick-borne illness other than Lyme disease
- You want the tick tested, or any other lab work
- You’re having an emergency
Not sure how long it was attached, or what kind of tick it was? That’s okay. The free pre-screen is designed to help you work out what comes next.
Don’t wait on these
Seek in-person care rather than online care if you have a high fever, a severe headache, a stiff neck, confusion, facial drooping, chest pain, an irregular heartbeat, shortness of breath, or a spreading rash with fever. These need someone who can examine you. Tickortreat does not handle emergencies.
Where we’ll operate
Planned 2027 launch area: VT · NH · ME · MA · CT · NY*
You’ll need to be physically located in one of these states when your visit is reviewed.
*New York launch pending regulatory authorization.
Travelling? The free pre-screen will tell you whether we can see you where you are.
Common questions
What exactly am I paying for?
Review of your submitted visit by a licensed clinician, their clinical judgment about whether preventive treatment is appropriate, and a prescription sent to your pharmacy when it is. One charge of $75, after you’ve already been told you’re eligible to continue.
What if the clinician decides treatment isn’t appropriate?
You’re paying for clinical judgment, not for a prescription. Sometimes the right clinical decision is not to prescribe. If that happens, we’ll explain why and what to do next. Our refund policy covers when a charge is returned.
Do you take insurance?
No, we’re cash-pay only. But we do give you a superbill, the itemized receipt with the diagnosis and procedure codes an insurer needs, so you can submit the visit yourself if your plan covers out-of-network care. Some do, some don’t. The charge also works with an HSA or FSA.
Can I share the visit with my own doctor?
Yes, and we’d encourage it. You get a PDF of the clinical encounter: what you reported, what the clinician concluded, and what was prescribed. Send it to your primary care practice if you’d like it in your regular chart. It’s also worth keeping in case you feel unwell weeks later, because the date of the bite and what was done about it are exactly what a clinician will ask for.
How fast is it?
The pre-screen takes a few minutes. The visit itself is asynchronous, meaning you fill it out whenever suits you rather than waiting for an appointment slot, and a clinician reviews it afterward. We don’t promise a specific turnaround time, because the 72-hour window is what actually matters and we’d rather you start early than rely on us being quick.
Do I need an account?
Not to use the pre-screen. You’ll provide the information a clinician needs if you continue to a visit.
Is this the same as the tick identification tool?
No, and the two are deliberately kept separate. The photo tool is free, educational, and runs on its own. Nothing you submit there reaches a clinician or affects whether you can be seen here, and a visit will ask you for everything it needs from scratch.
You don’t need to identify your tick before starting a visit.
Can you treat my child?
The pre-screen asks about age, because the guidance and the dosing differ for children and some situations are better handled in person. It will tell you where you stand.
Found a tick?
Start with the free pre-screen. A few minutes, no payment, and a clear answer about what to do next.
Free pre-screen when we open. No payment unless eligible.
Planned 2027 launch area: VT · NH · ME · MA · CT · NY*
*New York launch pending regulatory authorization.