Where you live narrows down your options for HRT platforms in Canada before price even enters the picture. At Longevity Benchmark, we price out a full year rather than just the first visit, because the advertised fee tells you very little about what the entire year will cost. Felix Health prescribes in eight provinces, and Quebec is not one of them. For anyone in Montreal, that settles the question, regardless of the fee.
Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) and menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) are two names for the same treatment. The four services below fall into two groups: some can write you a prescription, while others provide a written plan that you take to your own doctor.
The Verdict
Three of These Four Canadian Services Prescribe
Four Canadian telehealth services carry a menopause or hormone offering worth comparing, and three of them say plainly that they prescribe. They are listed alphabetically below. Every figure is what each service publishes on its own site, which is why the Teladoc Health Canada row shows no price.
| Service | Prescribes | Published price | Where it operates | How care is delivered | Fits |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Felix Health | Yes | $99 initial assessment, charged only if a prescription is issued, then $40 per follow-up | Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, Saskatchewan, Ontario | Written messaging, reviewed by nurse practitioners and doctors | You want a prescription without booking a video appointment |
| Maple | Yes, at the practitioner's discretion | $85 a month for a family membership | Described as coast to coast | On-demand visits with Canadian-licensed doctors and nurse practitioners | Menopause is one of several things your household needs a doctor for |
| Science & Humans | Yes | $50 bloodwork, then a $200 clinician consultation charged only if treatment is prescribed, then $200 per quarter | Described as nationwide | Doctor and nurse-practitioner programs built around blood testing | You want hormones read against a panel and will pay quarterly for it |
| Teladoc Health Canada | Not stated on its site | Not published on its site | Canada, through its Expert Medical Opinion service | Registered nurses plus a written report from a specialist | You want a specialist opinion to take to your own prescriber |
Prescribing and Planning Are Different Services
A menopause program that stops at a written report cannot finish the job you came for. Teladoc Health Canada runs its menopause care through an Expert Medical Opinion service. You complete a health questionnaire and a registered nurse follows up. A specialist then writes a personalized report, which you go through with that nurse.
That is worth having if your own doctor is hesitant and you want documented specialist input to bring to the appointment. Teladoc Health Canada does not say on its menopause page whether the service also prescribes. Ask that question before paying, and compare the fee against Felix Health only once you have the answer. Read the service description before the price on any Canadian menopause offering, because the word "care" covers both jobs.
What HRT Platforms in Canada Leave Out of the Consult Fee
The advertised fee covers the visit and almost nothing else. Three other costs decide the first-year total.
The medication is usually the largest, and also the one most likely to be covered. Approved hormone products run through provincial and private drug plans even when a virtual visit does not.
| Cost | What it runs | Who tends to pay it |
|---|---|---|
| The consult or assessment fee | $40 to $99 per visit at Felix Health, or $85 a month for a Maple family membership | Cash-pay. Some private benefit plans reimburse virtual visits, so it is worth submitting the receipt |
| The medication | Billed by the pharmacy rather than by the telehealth service | Provincial and private plans often cover approved products even when they do not cover the virtual visit. Drug coverage saves more than any consult discount |
| Blood work, where a program uses it | Included in some hormone programs and billed separately by others | Provincial health insurance covers medically indicated lab work ordered by a licensed prescriber, so ask who orders it |
| Follow-up visits | $40 at Felix Health, included in a Maple membership | The number most often left out of a first-year comparison |
Coverage of a specific product depends on your province and on the form of the drug. The two are not interchangeable. Ontario publishes the Ontario Drug Benefit formulary search, which indexes more than 5,900 listed medications and lets you look one up by name, ingredient or Drug Identification Number.
The Ontario Drug Benefit (ODB) program covers Ontario residents who hold Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) coverage and fall into one of these groups.
- 65 years of age or older.
- 24 or younger and not covered by a private plan.
- Living in a long-term care home or a Community Home for Opportunity.
- Enrolled in the Trillium Drug Program.
- Receiving Ontario Works or Ontario Disability Support Program benefits.
- Receiving professional home and community care services.
Every other province runs its own formulary under its own rules, and the listing decision sits with the provincial ministry rather than with whoever wrote the prescription. The drug cost is therefore the largest uncontrolled number in a first-year total, because the consult fee is fixed and the drug is not. Provincial formularies are also why a friend's experience in Alberta tells you little about British Columbia.
What SOGC Says About Compounded Bioidentical Hormones
The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada (SOGC) does not support custom-compounded bioidentical hormone therapy. Its patient site, Menopause and U, endorses a North American Menopause Society position that names five safety concerns.
- Minimal government regulation and monitoring.
- Overdosing or underdosing.
- Impurities, or a lack of sterility.
- Missing efficacy and safety data.
- No label setting out the risks.
The same page makes the constructive half of the point. Many body-identical hormones are sold as Health Canada approved brand-name prescription drugs, so the approved route already covers the hormones most people are looking for. Choosing an approved product is not a compromise on the "bioidentical" question, and our page on HRT versus BHRT walks through what that label does and does not mean.
Use the SOGC position as a filter on any Canadian program you are considering. A program steering you toward compounded creams, troches or pellets is working against its own national society, and it owes you a specific clinical reason for doing so. If it will not give one, treat that refusal as the answer.
Whether You Need a Hormone Blood Test First
Most women approaching menopause do not need a hormone panel before treatment. Felix Health states plainly that it does not require testing to assess or treat menopause symptoms. It points to clinical guidance that treatment be prescribed by way of symptom review rather than lab tests or blood work.
That does not make blood work pointless. Thyroid disease, iron deficiency and metabolic change all produce fatigue, low mood and sleep disruption that look like the transition from the outside, and they need different treatment. Our perimenopause biomarker panel guide covers what to test when that ambiguity is real, and when to draw it.
The practical read for a Canadian buyer is about who orders the test. Lab work ordered by a licensed prescriber for a medical indication runs through provincial health insurance. A panel sold to you as part of a hormone package does not. A program that requires its own paid panel before it will discuss treatment is selling a test alongside the care, so ask which one you are being charged for.
How to Choose Among HRT Platforms in Canada
- Check your province first. A service that cannot prescribe where you live is not an option at any price.
- Ask whether it prescribes or only assesses. Felix Health, Maple and Science & Humans say they prescribe. Teladoc Health Canada's menopause page describes a specialist report and does not answer the question.
- Ask about Health Canada approved products. SOGC does not support compounded preparations, and its patient site notes that many body-identical hormones are sold as approved brand-name drugs.
- Add up a year of follow-ups before you compare first-visit fees. A $99 assessment with $40 follow-ups and an $85 monthly membership land in a different order across twelve months.
- Confirm you can take the prescription elsewhere. Outside-pharmacy prescribing and record portability set what it costs you to leave.
Who Should Not Use These Services
Skip the direct-to-consumer route entirely for any of these.
- Bleeding after 12 months without a period.
- Periods stopping before age 45.
- A personal history of breast cancer, clotting disorder or stroke.
Each of those needs an individual assessment with your full history in front of a clinician, and an intake form is the wrong instrument. Bring them to a family doctor or a gynaecologist, and ask for a referral to a menopause specialist if the first conversation stalls.
If you live in Quebec, New Brunswick or the territories, Felix Health cannot prescribe for you. Ask Maple or Science & Humans whether they cover your province, and see a family doctor if neither does. Testosterone therapy as a primary treatment is a different decision, and our testosterone therapy for women guide covers it.
What Would Change Our Answer
Three things would change our answer. If Felix Health or another prescribing service opened in Quebec, the province filter would stop being the first question for Quebec readers. And if Teladoc Health Canada published a price, it would become comparable on the same terms as the three that already do.
A change in provincial formulary listings would matter as much as the other two. Each province decides which hormone products and which delivery forms it lists, so broader listing would shift the cheapest sensible route for a large group of buyers.
Check your province against Felix Health's published list first, then price a year rather than a visit. That order settles most choices between HRT platforms in Canada.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which telehealth platforms prescribe hormone replacement therapy in Canada?
Felix Health, Maple and Science & Humans all prescribe. Felix Health covers eight provinces and reviews your assessment by written message rather than video. Maple offers on-demand visits with Canadian-licensed doctors and nurse practitioners and describes its coverage as coast to coast, with prescriptions issued at the practitioner's discretion. Science & Humans runs doctor-led hormone programs built around blood testing and describes its service as nationwide. Teladoc Health Canada also runs a menopause program, built around registered-nurse support and a specialist's written report, but its site does not say whether that service prescribes. Ask before you pay if a prescription is what you need.
Does it matter which province I live in?
Yes, and it is the first thing to check. Virtual care is regulated by the province the patient is in, so a prescriber generally needs registration with that province's college. Felix Health lists eight provinces and Quebec is not among them. Maple and Science & Humans describe national coverage without publishing a province list. Confirm your own province on Felix Health's menopause page before you compare anything else. A service that cannot prescribe where you live is not an option at any price.
How much does online hormone therapy cost in Canada?
The visit is the part you pay directly. Felix Health publishes a $99 initial assessment, charged only if a prescriber approves the visit and issues a prescription, and $40 for follow-ups. Maple publishes $85 a month for a family membership. Science & Humans publishes $50 for bloodwork, $200 for the clinician consultation charged only if treatment is prescribed, and $200 a quarter for ongoing care. Teladoc Health Canada does not publish a price. Medication is billed separately through a pharmacy and is frequently covered by a provincial drug plan or a private benefit plan even when the virtual visit is not.
Is hormone therapy covered by provincial health insurance?
Provincial health insurance covers the physician visit in the usual in-person system. Provincial drug plans separately cover listed medications, for the people those plans enroll. Ontario runs the Ontario Drug Benefit program, which enrolls OHIP holders in defined groups including people 65 or older and people 24 or younger with no private plan. Coverage of a specific product still varies by province and by the form of the drug.
Do I need a blood test before starting hormone therapy?
Usually not for menopause symptoms. Felix Health states that it does not require testing to assess or treat menopause symptoms. It points to clinical guidance that treatment be prescribed by way of symptom review rather than lab tests or blood work. Blood work still matters when something other than menopause is on the table, such as thyroid disease, iron deficiency or a metabolic question. A program that requires a hormone panel before it will discuss treatment is selling a test alongside the care, and that is worth asking about.
What does SOGC say about compounded bioidentical hormones?
The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada does not support custom-compounded bioidentical hormone therapy. Its patient site endorses a North American Menopause Society position that names five safety concerns. They are minimal regulation and monitoring, overdosing or underdosing, impurities or poor sterility, missing efficacy and safety data, and no risk label. The same page notes that many body-identical hormones are sold as Health Canada approved brand-name prescription drugs. A Canadian service steering you toward compounded creams or pellets is working against its own national society.
What should I ask a Canadian platform before signing up?
Ask four things before you pay. Do you prescribe in my province, or only assess? Will you prescribe Health Canada approved products? Is a follow-up visit included in the fee? Will you send the prescription to a pharmacy I choose? Outside-pharmacy prescribing and record portability set what it costs you to change services later, which is why the fourth question is worth asking at signup rather than at renewal.
Related
- Hormone therapy platforms compared: the wider provider rubric
- HRT vs BHRT: what the bioidentical label means
- Bioidentical hormone therapy cost: why compounded preparations have no list price
- HRT cost: the four access routes compared
- When to start HRT: the timing window
- HRT side effects and risks: the absolute numbers
- Methodology: how prices and scores are verified