ExactMeds is an online medication provider and telehealth platform created by RxGenomix.
Found online at ExactMeds.com, the platform uses pharmacogenomics testing to determine how genetic variations impact the medication you use, including the type and dose, for optimal outcomes.
Keep reading this review to learn everything about ExactMeds by RxGenomix today.
What is ExactMeds?
ExactMeds is a pharmacogenomics (PGx) service offered by Tennessee-based RxGenomix.
The company was founded to solve common drug-related problems in the United States – like drug reactions and ineffective formulas linked to genetic variations.
Many doctors prescribe medication using a “one-size-fits-all” approach, which may work for some patients but not others.
ExactMeds works differently. Genetic testing creates a report based on each patient’s unique needs. Then, an ExactMeds provider reviews the report, sends it to the patient’s healthcare provider, and uses the information to recommend the best medications and dosages for each patient.
Individual patients can order ExactMeds tests through the official website. The company also partners with corporations and benefits providers to offer pharmacogenomics testing to employees across the United States.
ExactMeds Benefits
Some of the benefits of ExactMeds include:
- Online consultation with clinical pharmacists
- Discover which medications are best based on unique genetic profile
- Get medications tailored specifically to you
- Reduce the risk of drug interactions and ineffective medication
- Get healthcare and treatment built for you
- Available for individuals or through benefits providers
How Does ExactMeds Work?
ExactMeds is based on the idea that gene variations impact how medications work for you.
Despite these genetic variations, doctors prescribe the same treatments for different patients. Doctors may prescribe ineffective medications, for example, or medications that negatively interact with other drugs or your body.
To help, ExactMeds uses pharmacogenomics (PGx) testing. You provide ExactMeds with a cheek swab, and ExactMeds analyzes your genes for factors impacting prescription medication.
Here’s how it works:
- You order a sample collection kit from ExactMeds online. The company ships the kit to your address in the United States.
- You provide a cheek swab using that collection kit, swiping the inside of your cheek for 30 seconds to collect DNA.
- ExactMeds partners with certified labs in the United States to process that cheek swab and analyze your genetic variations. The company checks 45 genes, including the genes most likely to influence drug interactions, for any variations impacting how your body handles drugs.
- These genetic variations impact drug interactions, drug metabolization, and drug effectiveness. Genetic variations could often determine whether a drug is unsafe and ineffective or safe and effective.
- After genetic testing, ExactMeds compiles a report to summarize the findings. You have this report for the rest of your life, giving you crucial insight into how your genes process drugs.
- ExactMeds also connects you with one of their clinical pharmacists, who can help you get medications explicitly tailored to you based on your genetic profile. However, the company does not recommend changing your medication usage or dosage until speaking with your healthcare provider.
Individual customers can undergo this process online through ExactMeds.com. The company also partners with benefits providers across the United States, allowing you to access pharmacogenomics testing through your employer.
Discover personalized medication with ExactMeds.
Why Genetics Testing is Important for Medication
ExactMeds checks 45 genes (out of 30,000 total in your DNA) for variations impacting the way your body processes medications.
Some genetic variations increase the risk of adverse drug interactions, for example. If you have this genetic variation, then you may not be able to take a specific combination of drugs – even though other adults can take this combination.
Genetics can also impact how your body metabolizes and uses drugs overall. Some drugs are highly effective for some people and not others, for example, because of genetic variations.
ExactMeds was founded to solve problems like:
- 50% of all medications on the market today are ineffective or minimally effective for patients.
- 1.3 million Americans visit the emergency room each year for drug reactions to prescription medication.
By completing a consultation with ExactMeds, you can discover the best medication for your unique needs and genes and then take those medications to achieve optimal health outcomes.
Here’s how RxGenomix explains the unique benefits of ExactMeds:
“Your genes make the single largest difference in your response to medications, and the ExactMeds® personalized medication service makes truly personalized prescribing for you possible.”
You start with ExactMeds by ordering a collection kit online and then providing the company with a cheek swab. The company uses an accredited lab to analyze the cheek swab before creating a report based on your unique genetic profile.
How to Get Started with ExactMeds
ExactMeds makes a cheek swab, testing your genes, and receiving the medication you need customized to your unique needs easy.
Here’s how to get started with ExactMeds:
Step 1) Order ExactMeds Online: Start with ExactMeds by ordering the starter kit online through ExactMeds.com. ExactMeds will then send a collection kit to your address in the United States.
Step 2) Complete Kit: Follow the instructions in the kit carefully, then return the kit to ExactMeds along with a signed form.
Step 3) Wait for Lab Processing & Action Report: ExactMeds processes samples at CLIA-certified labs in the United States. After lab testing, you receive an action report with complete details about your genes and their meaning. This report is often over 35 pages long.
Step 4) Receive a Medication Action Plan (MAP): A pharmacist with ExactMeds reviews your report and any additional patient information you provide to create a Medication Action Plan or MAP. This plan tells your healthcare provider what is most important about your results – including how your results could influence future treatment or medication prescriptions.
Step 5) Receive a Consultation: Finally, an ExactMeds pharmacist provides you with a consultation to discuss your results and the Medication Action Plan. The pharmacist explains your results, answers your questions, and equips you with the information you need to approach your healthcare provider.
By the end of the five-step process, you receive a report you can take to your doctor to adjust medication if necessary. ExactMeds advises against changing dosing or medication until you speak with your healthcare provider.
Get medications tailored to your genetics.
How Pharmacogenomic (PGx) Testing Works
ExactMeds uses pharmacogenomic (PGx) testing to provide better health outcomes for patients.
The Mayo Clinic explains that PGx studies how genes impact your body’s response to prescription and over-the-counter medication. It’s an emerging field that is increasingly important in how doctors prescribe medication to patients.
ExactMeds specifically claims to test 45 of the 30,000 genes in human DNA. The company checks these 45 genes for variations impacting how your body processes medications.
Some of the goals of pharmacogenomic testing include:
- Determining whether a medication may be effective for you
- Analyzing the best dose of that medication for you
- Checking whether or not you could have serious side effects from medication
To determine these answers, ExactMeds uses a lab to check your genetic makeup – including genetic variations that could affect how your body processes medication.
Genetics isn’t the only factor impacting how your body responds to medication. Your age, sex, race/ethnicity, and use of other medications also play an important role. PGx is just one of several tools your doctor can use to recommend the best medication for your unique needs.
What Types of Medications Are Impacted by Genetics?
You may be taking the wrong medications based on your genetics.
Some types of medications are more susceptible to genetic variances than others. Those medications include medications for conditions like:
- Chronic or acute pain
- High blood pressure
- Depression, anxiety, and other mental health conditions
- Diabetes
- High cholesterol
- Cancer
- Arthritis
- Acid reflux
- Peptic ulcer
- Migraines
- Thyroid disorders
- Asthma and COPD
- Heart attack
Genetics can affect the prescription medication categories above. However, it can also affect over-the-counter medications, herbal supplements, nutraceuticals, and recreational medications.
The FDA has recognized that many of these medications are affected by genetics. That’s why the FDA has pharmacogenomic (PGx) information listed on 250 medication labels – including some of the most-prescribed medications available today for the above conditions.
Try ExactMeds for optimal medication.
How Genetics Can Influence Medication
Your ExactMeds report can reveal potential drug interactions and other problems linked to the medication you use.
The report can list whether you’re a poor metabolizer or an ultra-rapid metabolizer of certain drugs, for example, based on your genetic testing.
Your report may put you in one of four categories for popular medications, including:
- Ultra-rapid metabolizer
- Normal metabolizer
- Intermediate metabolizer
- Poor metabolizer
Some people struggle to metabolize popular drugs because of genetic variations. Others metabolize them too quickly. With ExactMeds, you can get a unique insight into how your body processes popular drugs.
Your report could also help you reduce adverse drug reactions (ADRs), reduce healthcare costs, reduce medication costs, and speed up recovery times, among other benefits. Using effective medication proven to work, you could experience powerful results with ExactMeds.
ExactMeds Features
There are other online pharmacies available today. Why buy from ExactMeds? What makes ExactMeds unique?
Some of the features that separate ExactMeds from competitors include:
- Includes Thorough Consultation with Licensed Pharmacist: All ExactMeds patients receive a thorough consultation with a licensed pharmacist. The pharmacist evaluates your genetics report and then determines how genetic variations could impact your medication use. However, the licensed pharmacist does not recommend any changes to your medication until after your licensed healthcare provider has reviewed your report.
- Proprietary Suite of Analytics Tools: RxGenomix, the company behind ExactMeds, has built a proprietary suite of analytical tools. These tools analyze a patient’s medical history and genetic profile to identify any potential medication type and dosing changes. RxGenomix also uses this information in population studies.
- Reduce the Risk of Side Effects: Over one million Americans visit the emergency room each year for interactions related to prescription drugs. ExactMeds can reduce the risk of side effects linked to prescription medication. Instead of using a “one-size-fits-all” approach to recommend medication, ExactMeds recommends medications unique to each patient.
- Get the Right Medication for Your Genetics: Genetic variations influence the effectiveness of medications. Failure rates in some classes of medication can be as high as 75% – largely because of genetic differences between patients. Genetics can influence how your body metabolizes certain medications. With ExactMeds, you get a consultation from a PGx-trained pharmacist to get the right medication for your unique needs.
- Quick & Simple Cheek Swab: Genetic testing can verify which medication is right for you. To complete genetic testing with ExactMeds, simply use a cheek swab. The collection kit comes with the cheek swab and instructions on using it – swipe it around your cheek for 30 seconds to collect DNA.
- Test 45 Genes Out of 30,000: Your ExactMeds test checks 45 of your genes (out of 30,000 total in human DNA) for variations impacting the medication you use. These variations can change the way your body reacts to drugs or metabolizes drugs. Variations can also increase the risk of side effects or negative interactions.
- Genetic Information Used Solely for Personalized Medication Plan: ExactMeds checks just 45 genes out of 30,000. The company doesn’t check your entire DNA profile. The company claims information is “used solely to create a more personalized medication plan for you.”
- Transparent Genetic Testing: ExactMeds focuses on 45 genes out of 30,000 in your DNA. These 45 genes have been explicitly linked to medication metabolization. ExactMeds lists the 45 genes upfront, including Cytochrome P450 genes like CYP2C9, CYP2C19, and others. These genes are particularly important for drug interactions. You can view the complete list of tested genes here.
- Accredited Labs: RxGenomix is not a lab – it’s a pharmacogenomics service provider—however, the company partners with certified labs across the United States.
- Avoid Ineffective Medication: According to ExactMeds, roughly half of all prescription medication is ineffective or minimally effective for patients. ExactMeds aims to solve that problem by recommending medications specific to your unique needs, helping you avoid ineffective or minimally effective medication.
- HSA/FSA Eligible: You can use healthcare savings account funds to buy medications from ExactMeds.
- Corporate Partnerships Available: ExactMeds works with benefit providers (including employers, insurers, and third-party administrators) to offer genetic testing programs for employees, helping them check their genes for genetic variances linked to medication.
- Get Better Medication for a Variety of Conditions: ExactMeds pharmacogenomics testing can help you discover better medication for various conditions. The FDA currently has pharmacogenomic information on the packaging of 250+ medications, including prescription medication. Whether you’re taking medication for high blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, arthritis, or cancer, your genetics could be influencing the effectiveness of that medication.
ExactMeds Pricing
ExactMeds is available to individuals through ExactMeds.com or your benefits provider.
Here’s how pricing works when ordering ExactMeds online today as an individual:
- ExactMeds: $499
Your ExactMeds purchase includes the collection kit, lab testing, the 1:1 consultation with a licensed pharmacist, and the final report, among other perks:
- Easy-to-use cheek swab and collection kit delivered to your home
- 1:1 consultation with a certified pharmacist
- One year access to pharmacist support at no additional charge
- Easy-to-understand reports, along with complete documentation for your doctor
- Lifetime access to crucial genetic testing information
- Customer support
- ExactMeds is an HSA/FSA-eligible purchase. The company also offers financing.
About RxGenomix
RxGenomix is a Franklin, Tennessee-based healthcare technology company best-known for ExactMeds. The company offers ExactMeds to individuals and businesses to help anyone live healthier lives.
RxGenomix describes itself as a PGx services company – not a lab. Instead, the company partners with certified labs across the United States. The company sees pharmacogenomics (PGx) as “the next frontier in medication therapy management.”
You can contact RxGenomix and the ExactMeds customer service team via the following:
- Phone: (615) 814-2911
- Email: info@rxgenomix.com
Final Word
ExactMeds is a pharmacogenomic testing (PGx) service from RxGenomix. The company was founded with the goal of using genetics to recommend safer, more effective drugs to patients.
By sending a cheek swab to ExactMeds today, you can get a comprehensive profile of how your genes impact the medication you use. Slight variations in 45 genes can affect drug interactions and the metabolization of medication, among other factors. Then, you can bring this information to your doctor to adjust drug type and dosing.
Visit the official website to learn more about ExactMeds and how it works or to sign up online today.