You might gain some weight over the holidays, but how do you plan to take it off? More and more people are turning to weight loss clinics that use prescription pills to help with weight loss. A News 4 Trouble Shooters hidden camera investigation shows you how one clinic claims to help people drop the pounds.
"I've struggled with my weight pretty much years and years of my life." Like so many San Antonians, Karissa Benavides is looking to drop some weight.
So when someone told her about a clinic specializing in weight loss, she thought, "This is something that could really help me."
She went to the Oak Hills Medical and Rehab Clinic on Fredericksburg road, on the northwest side. It is also a branch location for Internet Medical Clinics, a center focusing on weight management that promises patients will be seen by a medical provider.
After a few visits, Karissa became concerned about the care she received here. She says she never saw a doctor, only a physician assistant.
His diagnosis for Karissa? A thyroid problem which could contribute to weight gain and high blood pressure.
"This pretty much stumped me because i had never had high blood pressure or thyroid problems," says Karissa.
As she left the clinic, Karissa was surprised to be given three prescription bottles filled with pills for the thyroid and blood pressure problems. Pills that experts say have an added benefit of weight loss.
"Everything is given to you there," says Karissa of the medications. "The thyroid medication, the high blood pressure medication. Any medicine that they put you on, it is furnished 100% there."
Karissa decided to get a second opinion from her own doctor. "She said you do not need to be on this medication," Karissa says she was told by her doctor. "She said you need to watch where you go and just make sure things are legitimate where you are."
Concerned she never saw a medical doctor and was given medications for thyroid and blood pressure problems she did not believe she had, Karissa returned to the clinic. This time with a Trouble Shooters producer and a hidden camera.
Again, she met with the physician assistant at Internet Medical Clinics.
"Am I ever going to see an M.D. around here, like to go over medical records?" she asked.
The physician assistant answered, "I'm it. I'm it. There's no M.D."
Karissa then asked about the thyroid medication she was given. The P.A. answered, "You're at 24, your receptors are empty! We want to see it at least at 30. That tells me right there that you need to be on thyroid hormone."
Dr. Donald Patrick, head of the Texas Medical Board, says it is okay for a physician assistant to see patients and prescribe them medication, as long as a medical doctor is on-site 20% of the time.
"A physician assistant and a nurse practitioner can also see patients independently," says Dr. Patrick.
By law, that is all the M.D. is required to do. The M.D. does not have to see any of the patients.
Dr. Patrick also says giving medication to someone who may not need it could be harmful.
The Trouble Shooters tried several times to interview someone with Internet Medical Clinics, but our requests for an on-camera interview were never granted.
Instead, a spokesperson sent us a statement saying:
"...Internet Medical Clinics believes it is in compliance with all the laws of the state of texas in this matter." Internet Medical Clinics also claims its centers have records verifying that a physician is on-site 20% of the time and that its locations are allowed to hand out medications so long as they don't charge for them.
Karissa is not so sure. She paid more than $100 for her medical consultation.
She says, in the future, she will be getting her medical advice, from an M.D.
When asked if she would go back to Internet Medical Clinics, Karissa responds, "No, no. I'll just stick with my primary care doctor and know 100% percent that I'm getting the medication that I'm getting."
As for being given prescription pills at a clinic, experts say be careful. If there is no doctor on-site, as in Karissa's case, you want to be sure you do not get pills for a condition you may not have.
Herbal and dietary supplements are also popular with many people who want to lose weight. Do any of them, like hoodia, bitter orange, or green tea extract, work? Click here to find out.
