Frequently Asked Questions About Altos Consulting Group.

ACG reviews your target market, the clinic category you are considering and your background. You leave with a clear picture of the opportunity in your area, a realistic view of the compliance landscape in your state and an honest read on fit. There is no pitch and no obligation.

Entrepreneurs who want to build a real, defensible cash-pay health business, not a side project or a get-rich-quick play. Many ACG clients come from business, finance, real estate, corporate careers and healthcare. No medical background is required to own the business; an independent, state-licensed Medical Director directs all clinical care. Business seriousness is required.

That is the first question ACG answers, before you commit to anything. Market validation starts every engagement: population, income, existing competition, search demand for your clinic category and the local regulatory picture, so you can judge the opportunity before you sign a lease or buy equipment. Some markets that look saturated have gaps, and some that look empty lack the patient base.

Yes. ACG arranges client introductions for qualified prospects. Ask on the strategy call and we will match you, where possible, with a client who opened a similar clinic type in a similar market. We do not publish client contact details; in the meantime, read our client results.

No. No medical background is required to own the business; an independent, state-licensed Medical Director directs all clinical care. ACG introduces you to vetted Medical Directors through partner networks that cover all 50 states, and many ACG clinic owners come from business, finance and real estate. The same holds when you open a longevity clinic, a med spa or any of our 13 categories, though some states' corporate practice rules shape the ownership structure (see Compliance & Legal).

A Medical Director is a licensed physician (MD or DO) who provides clinical oversight, approves treatment protocols, holds prescribing authority for your clinic's services and meets your state's medical oversight requirements. The role is usually part-time or supervisory, not a full-time position. ACG introduces you to vetted Medical Directors through its partner networks and helps you structure the relationship for your state.

Yes. Depending on your clinic type, you will need licensed clinical staff, typically a Nurse Practitioner, PA or RN, to administer treatments; what each may do depends on your services and your state's scope-of-practice rules. ACG helps you define the roles, supports hiring and trains your team once they are onboarded. See our clinic staff training.

ACG targets a 60-day launch window from keys received, market and regulatory conditions permitting. The compliance and setup work happens before keys, and its timing varies by state, clinic type and regulatory complexity. On the strategy call we tell you what a realistic timeline looks like in your market.

Phase 1, Vision & Discovery: market validation, competitor mapping, search demand analysis and a go/no-go before you sign anything. Phase 2, Clinic & Staff Setup: entity structure and licensing, the Medical Director introduction, EMR and payments, your brand and staff hiring. Phase 3, Regenerative Supply: staff training, supplier access, lab partners and protocol support, with Medical Director sign-off. Phase 4, Launch: the launch marketing plan, local search and paid advertising strategy, and grand opening support; marketing execution is a separate engagement. Phase 5, Post-Launch: 60 days of continued advisory. See the full sequence in our New Clinic Launch program.

No. Market validation helps you choose the market and the location before you sign a lease. Signing a lease first is a common mistake ACG helps clients avoid: the engagement starts before you find a location, so you can validate demand, understand the competition and choose the area with confidence.

ACG helps founders launch clinics across 13 categories: longevity, hormone optimization, men's health and TRT, women's health and hormones, metabolic and weight loss, peptide therapy, sexual wellness, joint and musculoskeletal, neurological wellness, hair regeneration, IV therapy and infusion, stem cell therapy, and aesthetics and med spa. Telehealth is a service, not a category (see Telehealth below). Not sure which type of clinic to open? Compare all 13 by patient demand.

ACG answers it in market validation, from your area's population, income, local competition and search demand by category. National demand is only a starting point: U.S. searches for "trt near me" and for "peptide therapy" each run 10,000 to 100,000 a month (Google Keyword Planner, U.S., Sep 2025 to Aug 2026), but the right clinic depends on your market. See, for example, what it takes to open a men's health and TRT clinic.

Yes. ACG plans medical weight loss clinics as full programs, not GLP-1 dispensaries. Wegovy and Zepbound are FDA-approved for chronic weight management, and routine compounding of semaglutide and tirzepatide ended when FDA declared their shortages resolved. What remains is narrow: 503A compounding for a prescriber-documented patient need, or an FDA-regulated clinical study run under an IRB-approved protocol and an investigational new drug application (IND), and ACG helps clients prepare both the IRB application and the IND. A study drug cannot be promoted or sold commercially, and charging participants for it requires FDA's written authorization and is limited to direct cost. See how we help you open a medical weight loss clinic.

It depends on your market, patient volume, service mix and execution, so ACG models the numbers for your market and category rather than quoting an average. Our illustrative planning scenarios show how the cash-pay math works; they are not projections or typical results. Nothing here is a guarantee of income.

Cash-pay clinics operate outside insurance: patients pay at the time of service, so there are no claims, reimbursement negotiations or denials to manage. The clinic sets its own prices for the care it offers rather than following a plan's fee schedule. Regenerative health, longevity and aesthetic clinics usually run this way.

It varies by clinic type, market and facility size. Beyond ACG's consulting fee (pricing is discussed once the scope is clear), startup costs include lease deposits, buildout, equipment, initial supplies, staffing and working capital until revenue covers costs. ACG maps the full picture before you commit and can introduce vetted lending partners, with options such as SBA loans and healthcare lending programs; ACG is not a lender and does not guarantee financing. For examples, read the cost to open a TRT clinic and the cost to open a stem cell clinic.

Each state sets its own rules on entity structure, physician ownership, clinical staff scope of practice and licensing. ACG maps the requirements for your state and clinic type before you commit, so you do not discover a structural problem after signing a lease. We help founders open in all 50 states.

Some states have corporate practice of medicine (CPOM) laws that restrict non-physicians from owning medical practices. In those states a licensed physician usually owns the professional entity that delivers care, and the business side runs through a management services organization (MSO) under a management services agreement. The rules vary widely by state. If CPOM applies in yours, ACG maps the structure with your healthcare attorney before you file anything, not after.

HIPAA is planned into every ACG clinic setup: an EMR whose vendor signs a Business Associate Agreement, intake forms, patient communications, and marketing tools chosen so protected health information stays out of advertising platforms. ACG helps you set it up correctly from the start, because fixing it after launch costs far more.

The core test: a 503A pharmacy may compound a bulk substance only if it has a USP or NF monograph, is a component of an FDA-approved drug or is on FDA's 503A bulks list; FDA's interim policy also allows some substances still under review (Category 1). Many popular peptides fail the test: BPC-157, TB-500, CJC-1295 and ipamorelin cannot be compounded today (October 2026), whatever a supplier says. ACG works with vetted 503A pharmacies, only lawfully compoundable compounds are offered, and your Medical Director sets every protocol. See the status table on our peptide therapy page.

ACG clients get pre-negotiated pricing on clinical supplies, materials and equipment that is unavailable outside the network, a difference that compounds every month. Introductions cover 503A compounding pharmacies for lawfully compoundable peptides and hormones, PRP systems and kits, equipment and technology, clinical consumables, lab partners and practice software, and are made at no additional charge. Savings depend on your clinic type, service mix and volume, so ACG publishes no savings figure. See our clinic supplier network.

No. ACG is a consulting and advisory firm, not a franchise. You pay one consulting fee and own the business, the brand and the equity, with no royalties and no franchise fees. ACG empowers your independence. It does not create dependency.

A franchise licenses you its brand and system for a franchise fee plus royalties, typically 5 to 8% of revenue for the life of the agreement, and the franchise agreement constrains resale. Opening your own clinic with ACG costs one consulting fee plus your buildout and startup costs, and the brand and its value are yours. To compare, weigh the total cost over the years you plan to own the clinic, who owns the brand at exit, how far you can adapt the model to your market and what happens if the franchisor changes terms. See the independent clinic vs. franchise breakdown.

Yes. Our telehealth consulting applies the same system to a virtual practice: Medical Director introductions, state licensing, protocol support for your Medical Director, a HIPAA-compliant platform and marketing strategy (marketing execution is a separate engagement), without the buildout. Telehealth suits hormone optimization, peptide therapy and medical weight loss; services that need in-person administration need a physical location. Many ACG clients start virtual and open a physical clinic once demand in their market is proven.

Clinicians generally need a license in each patient's state, and Nurse Practitioner prescribing authority differs by state. Controlled substances add a federal layer: testosterone is Schedule III, and federal law generally requires an in-person medical evaluation before a controlled substance is prescribed remotely. A temporary DEA and HHS rule allows telemedicine prescribing without one, when its conditions are met, through December 31, 2026; DEA's permanent special registration rule is in final review, not yet published. ACG maps the rules for your target states and services before you commit.

Yes, through our clinic growth consulting. ACG works with chiropractors, med spas, weight loss clinics, wellness centers, hormone clinics, IV therapy practices and any cash-pay or hybrid operation. It starts with an assessment: supplier costs against network rates, marketing against category benchmarks, staff training gaps and operations. If we do not find at least three specific, actionable opportunities, we will tell you directly. Pricing is discussed once the scope is clear.

Yes. Adding peptide therapy, hormone optimization, IV therapy, medical weight loss or joint and musculoskeletal services takes four things: the right service for your patient base, supplier access, staff training and a compliance structure. ACG plans all four with you. Each has its own rules: a peptide program can include only compounds that can be lawfully compounded, and your Medical Director sets every protocol.

The engagement includes 60 days of post-launch advisory: bottleneck identification, marketing diagnosis, staff follow-up training and campaign recommendations. After that you run the clinic on your own, with no royalties and no franchise fees. Clients who want more can engage ACG separately as they grow: a second location, new service categories or a telehealth practice alongside the clinic. You own the brand, so expansion needs no franchisor's approval.

The launch engagement includes a launch marketing plan, a local search strategy and a paid advertising strategy planned within your category's ad rules. ACG plans the strategy; marketing execution is a separate engagement. Post-launch marketing diagnosis is part of the 60-day advisory period, and an open clinic can start with a clinic marketing audit.

Lease and facility, clinical staff, medical supplies (where network supplier pricing helps), Medical Director fees, EMR and technology subscriptions, marketing spend and general operating costs. There are no ongoing fees to ACG after the engagement. ACG models the operating costs with you so you understand the economics before you open.