Best Doctors expert second opinion: what the brand is called today
Compare medical second-opinion services → Best Doctors
Publisher disclosure: Diagnostic Detectives Network. Its own service appears last in the alternatives section. This guide compares published service structure, access, and price; it does not assess care quality.
Provider facts last verified: 21 September 2026. Teladoc's published terms can change; confirm current details directly with Teladoc Health or your plan sponsor before submitting records or payment.
Best Doctors, Inc. was a well-known medical second-opinion company before Teladoc Health completed its acquisition of Best Doctors in 2017. The Best Doctors brand continued for several years afterward, then was folded into Teladoc's own “Teladoc Medical Experts” branding, delivering a product called Expert Medical Opinion. The transition is confirmed directly: bestdoctors.com now returns a permanent redirect to teladochealth.com. This guide is for anyone who remembers the “Best Doctors” name and is trying to find out what it became; for full process detail on the current product, see the separate Teladoc Medical Experts guide, which this page summarizes rather than repeats. BD-01, BD-02
The bestdoctors.com domain now redirects permanently to teladochealth.com, and Teladoc's own 2017 investor announcement confirms the acquisition. Several benefits-administrator pages (not Teladoc's own) describe the underlying service being renamed “Teladoc Medical Experts” around 2021–2022.
Can an individual use the service formerly called Best Doctors?
Only through an eligible benefit, under today's name. Teladoc's own self-pay FAQ lists Expert Medical Opinion among the services unavailable without insurance or employer coverage. No consumer sign-up path for a direct cash purchase is published on any Teladoc-owned page reviewed. BD-03
What does it cost today?
No direct cash price is published. Teladoc's FAQ states: “If these services are part of your Teladoc Health benefit, the services are at no cost to you or your eligible dependents.” By contrast, Teladoc does publish a self-pay rate for its General Medical visits on the same page — Expert Medical Opinion is not given an equivalent public rate, consistent with it being a benefit-gated product. BD-04, BD-03
How does the process work now?
Per Teladoc's current FAQ: a member requests the service by app, website, or phone; a clinical-team member calls to assess the need and identify records to collect; Teladoc collects the records directly (“you do not need to travel or contact your doctor(s) to obtain records”); an expert reviews the existing diagnosis or treatment plan; and a report is delivered. This mirrors the case-coordination model Best Doctors was known for — full step-by-step detail is in the linked Teladoc Medical Experts guide. BD-04
Who reviews the case?
Matched, not chosen by the member in advance. Teladoc's marketing page describes “leading medical experts” with experience across “over 450 specialties,” drawn from a network described elsewhere as more than 50,000 physicians; no mechanism for a member to select a specific named doctor before matching is published. BD-05
How long does it take?
Not published on Teladoc's US site — neither the FAQ nor the marketing page states a turnaround. A figure of 15–20 business days appears on Teladoc's Australian entity's site, but that applies to the Australian product, not the US Expert Medical Opinion service, and should not be assumed to carry over. BD-03, BD-06
What is included — and what is not?
Included: expert review of an existing diagnosis or treatment plan and a written report, framed by Teladoc as medical information rather than treatment. Explicitly excluded: “These services do not provide medical care, diagnoses or treatments,” and Teladoc states no doctor-patient relationship is created between the member and Teladoc Health or the reviewing expert. The cost of any resulting tests or treatment is separate and follows the member's own insurance. Internationally, Teladoc runs separate country-specific entities — for example in the UK and Australia — rather than one unified global product, a contrast with Best Doctors' historical single international distribution model; this is an observation about today's structure rather than a claim Teladoc itself makes. BD-03, BD-07, BD-08
Best Doctors → Teladoc Medical Experts, at a glance
| Feature | Today, as Teladoc Medical Experts / Expert Medical Opinion |
|---|---|
| Brand status | bestdoctors.com redirects permanently to teladochealth.com |
| Eligibility | Employer/health-plan benefit only; not sold direct to individuals |
| Published price | Not published; no cost when included in an eligible benefit |
| Reviewer | Matched from a 50,000+ physician, 450+ specialty network |
| Published turnaround (US) | Not published |
| International structure | Separate country entities (e.g. UK, Australia), not one global product |
| Last verified | 2026-09-21 |
What alternatives can be considered?
Someone without an eligible Teladoc benefit can compare the options below. They are not ranked; each provider should confirm its current terms before a patient submits records or payment.
- Included Health Expert Medical Opinion. Included Health's Expert Medical Opinion is published as an employer/health-plan benefit only, with a written opinion typically delivered within 7–14 business days. Read the Included Health guide.
- 2nd.MD. 2nd.MD is available both through employer/health-plan sponsorship and to individuals who contact the company independently, according to its own site; the price for an independent request is not published. Read the 2nd.MD guide.
- Cleveland Clinic Virtual Second Opinion. Cleveland Clinic publishes direct self-pay routes: $1,690 for a US written report, $1,990 for a report plus provider visit where available, and $4,500 for an international opinion, subject to location rules. Read the Cleveland Clinic guide. CC-01
- Diagnostic Detectives Network. Diagnostic Detectives Network provides independent, private-pay medical second opinions through multi-expert panels of 3–10+ academic physicians, matched to each case from the worldwide medical literature — not from a fixed network. DDN works directly with private individuals and families worldwide — no employer plan, insurance, or membership required. Pricing starts from €6,000 per case; the exact quote depends on panel size and complexity. See what a multi-expert independent panel adds. Start Your Case.
Frequently asked questions
Does Best Doctors still exist as a separate company?
No, not as an independently branded product. Teladoc Health completed its acquisition of Best Doctors, Inc. in 2017, and bestdoctors.com now permanently redirects to teladochealth.com. The underlying service continues today as Teladoc Medical Experts / Expert Medical Opinion.
Can I buy the old Best Doctors service directly, without insurance?
Not based on Teladoc's current published pages. Teladoc's own self-pay FAQ lists Expert Medical Opinion among the services unavailable without insurance or employer coverage, and no direct cash-purchase path is published.
What is the current name of the Best Doctors service?
Teladoc Medical Experts is the current brand, and Expert Medical Opinion is the specific service name. Third-party benefits-administrator pages describe the rename occurring around 2021–2022, though Teladoc's own site does not narrate the history directly — the domain redirect and the 2017 acquisition announcement are the clearest confirmation.
Is the international Best Doctors model still available in one form?
Not as a single global product today. Teladoc operates separate country-specific entities for similar services, including in the UK and Australia, rather than one unified international offering — a structural difference from Best Doctors' historical model.
Is this service appropriate for an emergency?
No. Teladoc's FAQ describes Expert Medical Opinion as an information service, not emergency care, diagnosis, or treatment. Anyone with urgent symptoms should contact local emergency services. DDN is a research-grade informational service — it is not telemedicine, establishes no physician-patient relationship, and is not for emergencies.
About this guide and corrections
Publisher: Diagnostic Detectives Network. Its service is disclosed and listed last; every statement about the named provider is limited to the official pages reviewed.
If a fact is wrong or the provider has changed its terms, send the page title, disputed statement, and official source through the contact page. The correction will be checked against the provider's own publication and the visible verification date will be updated when warranted.
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Source register
- BD-01: Teladoc Health investor relations — Teladoc Completes Acquisition of Best Doctors, accessed 2026-09-21.
- BD-02: bestdoctors.com redirect to teladochealth.com, verified live, accessed 2026-09-21.
- BD-03: Teladoc Health — Expert Medical Opinion FAQs, accessed 2026-09-21.
- BD-04: Teladoc Health — Self-Pay FAQ, accessed 2026-09-21.
- BD-05: Teladoc Health — Medical Experts, accessed 2026-09-21.
- BD-06: Teladoc Health Australia — aia.teladochealth.au, accessed 2026-09-21 (cited only to show a different, non-US turnaround figure; not used as a US source).
- BD-07: Teladoc Health UK — Second Medical Opinion, accessed 2026-09-21.
- BD-08: Secondary sources on the rebrand date (Teladoc's own site does not narrate it): Sun Life Advisor Site, “Best Doctors is rebranding as Teladoc Medical Experts”; Empire Life, “Teladoc Health rebrands Best Doctors services”; Michigan State University HR, “Best Doctors is Now Teladoc Medical Experts” — accessed 2026-09-21.
- CC-01: Cleveland Clinic — Virtual Second Opinions, last verified 2026-07-11.
- DDN: Diagnostic Detectives Network service statements: Medical Second Opinion, How It Works, and Contact.