• Alcure Signup

    You have taken the first step towards drinking less and living more!

    All of your information is encrypted to HIPAA standards as you enter it and is stored in our secure cloud environment.

    You'll create your account and schedule your medical provider's video chat after completing our medical questionnaire below.

  • Nicely done! Now some info to help customize your journey. The next few questions will ask about your current drinking habits.

     These questions should take about 4 minutes.

  • Almost there! The following questions are required for a more complete health history.

    About 1 minute to complete.

  • Contact Info

    The home stretch! We need to gather your name, date of birth, address and a good phone number to reach you for our electronic medical record system. This information is also kept strictly confidential and is not shared with anyone outside Alcure or the pharmacy where we will e-prescribe your medication.

  • Consent to Telehealth Treatment

    Alcure is a telehealth platform for medical providers, licensed or credentialed counselors and coaches to work with you in an accessible and efficient way using pharmacological extinction, also called the Sinclair Method, to treat alcohol use disorder.

    Medical providers refer to physicians, physicians assistants, nurse practitioners and licensed or credentialed counselors (collectively “medical providers”). Coaches refer to unlicensed persons experienced in coaching patients in Sinclair Method treatment and matters related to health and wellness. Medical providers and coaches are collectively referred to as “providers.”

    All providers are independent contractors and are not employees of Alcure LLC ("Alcure"). The role of the Alcure telehealth platform is to facilitate providers' interaction with you. All treatment decisions are managed exclusively by medical providers. You agree to provide accurate responses to all questions regarding your alcohol use pattern and history, any use of opioids and other drugs or medications and all other past and present health conditions when using the Alcure telehealth platform.

    Services are provided exclusively through telehealth, which refers to communication using video chat, email, texting, and telephone. Telehealth also refers to the electronic prescribing of medication and maintaining patient medical records privately and electronically.

    Providers using the Alcure telehealth platform do not provide "in-person" services to patients but, depending upon the needs of a patient, may refer a patient to another provider for in-person services. The Alcure telehealth platform is an acceptable mode of delivering the services described on the website which consist of assessing alcohol use disorder, prescribing an opioid-blocking medication and potentially other medications, and counseling or coaching to reduce alcohol desire or cravings and bring alcohol consumption under control. Coaching support is provided primarily or exclusively via video tutorials and courses though clients may request 1-1 live coaching as a supplemental service. Counseling is a separately priced service also provided upon request.

    Treatment on the Alcure telehealth platform may also include group video chat sessions with a counselor or coach if you elect for live counseling or coaching which involve anonymous participation or inclusion of your first name or first initial, or an alias name or initial. You consent to group counseling or coaching via group video chat sessions using this form of identification in group video chat sessions. For group sessions, you also agree to maintain the privacy of other participants by not revealing to outside persons their names, aliases, or other information that may permit an outside person to identify them.

    Coaching helps clients in the process of autonomous treatment. Coaches are well-versed in alcohol use disorder and helpful strategies to assist with the treatment provided on the Alcure digital health platform, but coaches are not medical providers and cannot diagnose or treat medical or mental health issues.

    Communications with your medical providers on the Alcure telehealth platform are private and protected under doctor-patient and counselor-patient legal privileges to enable you to speak freely about your physical and mental health conditions. To the extent individual privileges extend to each, you agree that all are collaborating to optimize your treatment and will share your medical information between them and you waive applicable privileges as necessary to carry out collaboration. The waiver extends to Alcure support which may need to access protected information for administrative purposes. Any disclosure of privileged information to other parties will only be done in accordance with applicable laws. Communications with coaches are subject to a general right of privacy but may not be legally protected from disclosure in the same manner as doctor-patient and counselor-patient communications.

  • By clicking the consent option below, you agree that telehealth is an acceptable mode of providing treatment to you. You also agree that clicking the consent box is the equivalent of your legal acknowledgement and signature.

  • Privacy, Authorization, and Waivers

    HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996) is a federal law requiring health information privacy and security for patients. Other medical privacy laws exist requiring health information privacy and security for patients. Client health information gathered on the Alcure telehealth platform is maintained in a secure cloud storage environment that meets HIPAA requirements.

    Information gathered, stored, and transmitted may contain Protected Health Information ("PHI") as defined by HIPAA or other medical privacy laws as the content may reference your identity and treatment for alcohol use disorder, prior or existing medical conditions, coaching or counseling and the use of prescription medication.

    The Alcure telehealth platform sends emails to email accounts that may contain PHI, such as but not limited to calendaring links, video chat links, or direct email messages. Emails with PHI may also be sent to Alcure Business Associates affiliated with Alcure for the purpose of assisting in providing patient care. Calendaring appointments are set up through a third-party app that maintains information in a secure and encrypted manner. Payments are processed through a third-party app that maintains information in a secure and encrypted manner. Prescriptions are sent electronically through a third-party electronic prescribing platform that meets HIPAA requirements. Email sent from and received by Alcure is maintained in a secure cloud storage environment that meets HIPAA requirements but may be unencrypted in transit. The apps Alcure uses for calendaring, payment processing and electronic prescribing are conduits of PHI and receive incidental disclosure of PHI to facilitate patient care. Alcure has taken reasonable measures to assure protection and privacy regarding the use of these apps to include, but not limited to, verification of appropriate encryption technology and only minimum and necessary incidental use of PHI.

    Under HIPAA and other medical privacy laws, and to optimize the use of the Alcure telehealth platform, by consenting below you opt-in to emails being sent to and from your free, consumer email account such as, but not limited to, Gmail, Yahoo, and Hotmail, or another similar unsecured or unencrypted email account, which may contain PHI. You also opt-in to emails being sent to Alcure's Business Associates assisting in providing patient care that may utilize similar unsecured or unencrypted email accounts that may also contain PHI. Though typically low, there is a risk that emails sent to the above-described accounts could be read by a third person as these types of accounts generally do not protect against third person intrusion beyond standard account username and password requirements. Alcure is not responsible for safeguarding information once delivered to any of the above email accounts. If you do not wish to opt-in for unencrypted email being sent to email accounts as described above, do not continue with signup.

    Providers may invite you to communicate via text messaging between your cell phone and his or her cell phone. Text messaging, while meeting reasonable privacy standards, is generally not encrypted to HIPAA or other medical privacy law standards and text messaging providers such as, but not limited to, telecommunication companies may store the information and have not signed any Business Associate Agreement with Alcure to maintain the privacy of PHI. Similarly, providers may invite you to communicate verbally by telephone between your cell phone and his or her cell phone, or via landline on either end. Verbal telephone communications, while meeting reasonable privacy standards, are also generally not encrypted to HIPAA or other medical privacy law standards and telecommunication companies furnishing verbal telephone communication services may store caller related information and have not signed any Business Associate Agreement with Alcure to maintain the privacy of PHI. If you initiate or accept an invitation to text or speak by telephone with a provider, you are explicitly waiving any HIPAA or other medical privacy regulations regarding that mode of communication.

    Alcure program tutorials and courses may be hosted on a platform requiring access by creating a username and password that will involve providing your name and email address. Your name and email address are considered PHI. The hosting platform, while providing reasonable security and privacy, does not meet all HIPAA requirements. The hosting platform will use your name and email address to enable content access, track video watch time and other metrics. Alcure may use your name and email address, and other PHI, to create email messaging directly to you to facilitate treatment or for marketing purposes using the tutorial and courses hosting platform or another platform or application that does not meet all HIPAA requirements.

    You may refuse to provide authorization and waiver regarding disclosure of PHI under any of the circumstances described above. If you refuse authorization or waiver do not continue with signup.

    You may also revoke authorization and waiver at any time in the future but doing so will prevent us from serving you and, in that event, we will cancel your enrollment and refer you to a source to find an alternate provider. Each authorization and waiver identified above will remain in effect indefinitely unless and until you revoke authorization and waiver. Please send all revocations and related inquiries by email to support@alcure.me.

    Alcure Facebook group

    You may access our Facebook group called ALCURE. The group is public, and anyone can join it and view its content. The group offers general information related to excess drinking and alcohol use disorder and may offer peer support. Anyone may comment or post in the Facebook group.

    Facebook group comments and postings are not protected by HIPAA or other medical privacy laws. By participating in the Facebook group, you consent to waiver of all medical privacy requirements of any jurisdiction applicable to the disclosure of any past, present, or future PHI, and requirements for third parties facilitating the Facebook group to safeguard user related information or comply with any requirements regarding protection or use of PHI.

    Because the Facebook group is public, there is a risk for PHI redisclosure under these circumstances. You should not disclose any personal information or comments in the Alcure Facebook group that you would not be comfortable sharing in public.

    All data in any form, to include but not limited to comments, questions, videos, podcasts, slide-presentations, photographs, charts, and all other information of any kind and in any format provided by group moderators, administrators, and persons acting on behalf of Alcure within or associated with the Facebook group, including but not limited to Alcure providers, affiliated consultants, guests or any other participant is for INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY and is not intended to be, nor should it be relied upon or construed as medical, counseling, or coaching advice. Interactions, comments, postings, and other information by persons acting on behalf of Alcure do not create a doctor-patient or mental health provider-patient relationship, counseling or coaching relationship, fiduciary, or any other legal relationship. Also, information provided by other group users should not be construed as medical or mental health care advice, or counseling or coaching advice.

    You may never embarrass, humiliate, haze, intimidate, or abuse in any way another group user. The group is meant to facilitate ongoing education, support and positive interactions between all users and comments, questions, or any other information you provide in the group should be relevant to the purpose of the group. All group moderators, administrators, and persons acting on behalf of Alcure reserve the right to delete any comments, questions or data posted by you or any other user for any reason and to remove you or any other user from the group temporarily or permanently.

    Alcure does not manage emergencies

    Please keep in mind that we are not set up to manage a medical urgency or emergency. If you are experiencing a medical or mental health urgency or emergency, call 911 immediately or immediately visit your nearest hospital emergency department.

    Possible prescription reporting by a pharmacy

    Alcure does not report patient enrollment to anyone unless requested to by the patient or if legally required. The pharmacy filling a prescription from one of our medical providers may report the prescription to one or more central computer databases, though, and unfortunately it is not something we have control over.

    The medical insurance industry uses centralized computer databases to track patient prescriptions, mostly for controlled substances such as opioid-based pain medication to prevent "doctor shopping" and to increase patient safety. Naltrexone, almost always prescribed by our medical providers on the Alcure platform, is a non-controlled, non-addictive substance with a high patient safety index, so it is less likely to be reported, though naltrexone is associated with treating alcohol and opioid misuse and may be reported by some pharmacies for that reason. Other types of insurers, such as life insurers may gain access to similar databases to determine the health history of an insured or applicant for insurance. Alcure cannot guarantee against prescription reporting by a pharmacy and, should you have any concerns, we recommend you contact the pharmacy you plan to use in advance and ask the pharmacist in charge whether it will report a prescription of any medication your Alcure medical provide will supply.

    Miscellaneous

    If you will use a desktop or laptop computer, or mobile device provided by an employer or another person or entity to access services on the Alcure telehealth platform or access the Facebook group, there is a risk that your use of the Alcure platform or Facebook group may be monitored, especially through monitoring software used by many employers. To enhance privacy, you should only use a desktop or laptop computer, or mobile device, that you own, and which is username and password protected, and to always log out after use.

    This entire privacy and waiver section is deemed to include all information provided within the client signup questionnaire, including your name and other identifying information as entered into the questionnaire. It further incorporates in its entirety the Alcure terms of use and privacy as posted via hyperlink at the bottom of each page of the alcure.me website at the time you complete this form and as periodically updated. 

  • By clicking the consent box below, you agree to each privacy authorization and waiver. You also agree that clicking the consent box is the equivalent of your legal acknowledgement and signature.

  • Informed Consent for Treatment

    Pharmacological extinction, also referred to as the Sinclair Method, is a scientifically validated method for treating and permanently bringing under control alcohol use disorder. Studies demonstrate that alcohol consumption will trigger the human body to release endorphins. Endorphins are created inside the body but act upon the brain in a similar way to opioids. All opioids are known to cause dependency and addiction with extended use. Since alcohol triggers the release of endorphins, consuming alcohol is similar to taking an opioid and a person can develop a dependency or addiction to alcohol from repeated consumption of alcohol. Some people are more predisposed to dependency and addiction than others. Dependency or addiction to alcohol is characterized by excessive alcohol consumption or difficulty controlling consumption and is referred to as alcohol use disorder.

    By pairing the effects of an opioid-blocking medication such as naltrexone prescribed by the medical providers on the Alcure telehealth platform with episodes of drinking alcohol, studies demonstrate that in most patients the desire or craving for alcohol will steadily decrease over time. This process is called extinction and, over time, most patients will experience a significant reduction in their desire or craving for alcohol and the frequency and amount of alcohol consumed. In turn that helps patients restore their control over drinking.

    Your treatment will involve a medical provider determining whether you have alcohol use disorder and whether you are an appropriate candidate for treatment using the Sinclair Method, or another treatment modality, on the Alcure telehealth platform. That involves a review of your signup questionnaire answers, taking an oral medical history during a video chat medical exam and in rare cases where liver dysfunction or pregnancy in a woman is suspected a walk-in blood and/or urine test at a laboratory.

    If you are referred to treatment on the Alcure telehealth platform you will likely be prescribed an opioid-blocking medication for as-needed dosing. As-needed dosing refers to the timed dosing of the medication so that the effects of the medication (an “opioid blockade” in the brain) are paired with alcohol consumption.

    As-needed dosing requires you to avoid using the medication when you are not drinking alcohol and to always use the medication when you are drinking or under the influence of alcohol. You must use the medication as instructed by your medical provider and you may not give it to anyone else. This method of dosing is required throughout the entire course of treatment. Also, to avoid a relapse of alcohol use disorder, as-needed dosing of the medication is required for so long as you drink alcohol as part of your lifestyle.

    The medication's side effects are usually minimal and go away. Side effects can include dizziness, headache, upset stomach, and irritability. Less than 5% of users have reported the onset of allergic pneumonia that may be related to the medication. You agree to notify your medical providers on the Alcure telehealth platform if you experience any of the above conditions BUT TO FIRST SEEK IMMEDIATE MEDICAL ATTENTION SEPARATELY IF YOU BELIEVE THE MEDICATION IS CAUSING ANY SEVERE OR LIFE-THREATENING CONDITIONS, AND TO STOP TAKING THE MEDICATION IF YOU EXPERIENCE ANY SEVERE OR LIFE-THREATENING CONDITIONS.

    The medication does not make you immune from the other effects of alcohol. Accordingly, do not expect that by taking the medication you can drink greater amounts of alcohol without experiencing the negative effects of alcohol which include lack of physical coordination, mental impairment, impaired judgment, and alcohol poisoning. Consuming alcohol while using the medication will carry the same risk of harm as consuming the same amount of alcohol in the same amount of time without using the medication.

    Some patients drinking alcohol while using the medication may also feel a dimming effect of what some refer to as the "high" or pleasure associated with drinking alcohol which can be attributed to the blocking of endorphins. Some may experience that effect greater than others. Many will not notice it or will quickly get used to it. Alcohol also acts on the brain in a number of other ways that mostly cause a tension-relief or calming effect. The tension-relief or calming effect is also sometimes experienced as the pleasure associated with drinking alcohol. The medication only blocks endorphins and does not affect the tension-relief or calming effect associated with consuming alcohol. The medication does not affect the smell or taste of alcoholic beverages.

  • You agree that by clicking the consent box below you have read and understood the Informed Consent for Treatment, understand all the risks, benefits, and alternatives to treatment, and consent to treatment. You also agree that clicking the consent box is the equivalent of your legal acknowledgement and signature.

  • Finishing up! Next you'll setup payment and make an appointment with an Alcure medical provider.

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    Alcure monthly access
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