Mass General Brigham online second opinion: access, process, and price
Compare medical second-opinion services → Mass General Brigham
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. Mass General Brigham's published terms, including which US states are excluded, can change; confirm current details directly before submitting records or payment.
Mass General Brigham — the system that includes Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital — publishes an Online Second Opinion service. The legacy hospital-specific pages (massgeneral.org and brighamandwomens.org) now redirect into one unified Mass General Brigham page, which is the source used throughout this guide. Earlier, hospital-branded prices for this service that circulated separately for Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women's Hospital could not be reverified on the current, consolidated page. MGB-01, MGB-02
Mass General Brigham's own page currently excludes nine specific US locations from Online Second Opinions: Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, New Mexico, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, the US Virgin Islands, and Wyoming. In-person visits remain available to residents of those states.
Can an individual use the Mass General Brigham online second opinion?
Yes, but not as a fully self-service product: Mass General Brigham's page says “We require the primary doctor treating you to take part in the consultation process,” so the patient's own physician submits or co-submits records. It is not described as an employer-benefit product; Mass General Brigham states patients are directly responsible for all fees. MGB-01
What does a Mass General Brigham online second opinion cost?
Not published. The current page states only that “Fees for Online Second Opinions depend on the services. Patients are responsible for all fees,” without listing dollar figures for a written opinion, an imaging review, or a pathology review. Figures for this service that have circulated elsewhere could not be found on Mass General Brigham's, Massachusetts General Hospital's, or Brigham and Women's current pages — request a written estimate directly before proceeding. MGB-01
How does the Mass General Brigham process work?
The patient and treating physician complete online registration through Mass General Brigham's Online Second Opinion portal; the physician and/or patient then sends all relevant medical records, imaging, and pathology reports. Mass General Brigham matches the case with a specialist, who — with pathologist or radiologist input if materials are provided — prepares a detailed written letter. The report is posted online for the referring physician, the patient is notified by email, and the patient then discusses the findings with their own doctor. Because the treating physician is involved throughout, the process is better described as physician-to-physician consultation with the patient's participation than as a fully patient-initiated, physician-optional review. MGB-01
Who reviews the case?
Matched, not chosen or named by the patient in advance. Mass General Brigham's page says only that it will “match your case with a Mass General Brigham specialist”; no option to select or be told the specific reviewing physician ahead of the review is described. MGB-01
How long does it take?
Mass General Brigham's page states specialists “typically complete a second opinion within 10 business days” of receiving the complete case — roughly two calendar weeks. MGB-01
What is included — and what is not?
Included: a written specialist letter intended to help confirm a diagnosis or explore treatment options, drawing on submitted records, imaging, and pathology, with pathologist or radiologist review “if provided.” Mass General Brigham's page does not state an explicit exclusions list — for example, whether an in-person exam or a prescription is excluded is not addressed and should be confirmed directly. A separate Mass General Brigham International Patient Center supports patients from outside the US, though the reviewed Online Second Opinion page does not itself state country-level restrictions for that group. MGB-01
Mass General Brigham at a glance
| Feature | Mass General Brigham Online Second Opinion |
|---|---|
| Format | Remote; treating physician participates in submission |
| Published price | Not published; patient responsible for all fees |
| Reviewer | Matched Mass General Brigham specialist; not patient-selected |
| Published turnaround | Typically within 10 business days |
| Excluded US locations (2026-09-21) | CT, IA, ME, NM, OH, TN, TX, US Virgin Islands, WY |
| International patients | No country-level exclusion published; separate MGB International Patient Center exists |
| Last verified | 2026-09-21 |
What alternatives can be considered?
A resident of one of the excluded states, an international patient outside the routes described above, or anyone comparing structures before choosing where to start, can consider the options below. They are not ranked; each provider should confirm its current terms before a patient submits records or payment.
- Teladoc Medical Experts. Teladoc's Expert Medical Opinion is available at no cost when included in an eligible member's benefit; a direct cash price is not published and direct purchase without a benefit is not clearly confirmed. Read the Teladoc Medical Experts 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
- PinnacleCare membership. PinnacleCare publishes annual individual or family memberships from $15,000 to $55,000, built around ongoing health advisory and navigation rather than one fixed-price report. Read the PinnacleCare guide. PC-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 Mass General Brigham require my own doctor to be involved?
Yes. Mass General Brigham's page states that the primary treating doctor takes part in the consultation process, typically by submitting or co-submitting records. This is not a fully independent, physician-optional review.
What does a Mass General Brigham online second opinion cost?
Mass General Brigham does not publish a fixed price. Its page states only that fees depend on the services used and that patients are responsible for all fees; request a written estimate before proceeding.
Which US states are currently excluded from Mass General Brigham's Online Second Opinion?
As of 21 September 2026, Mass General Brigham's page lists Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, New Mexico, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, the US Virgin Islands, and Wyoming as excluded from the online service; in-person visits remain available in those states. This list can change — confirm current exclusions directly.
Can I choose which Mass General Brigham specialist reviews my case?
Mass General Brigham's page describes a matching process rather than patient selection: it states it will match the case with a specialist, without offering the patient a choice of a specific named reviewer in advance.
Is a Mass General Brigham online second opinion appropriate for an emergency?
No. It is a scheduled review process with a typical turnaround of about 10 business days and is not designed for urgent symptoms. 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.
Does Mass General Brigham serve patients outside the United States?
Its Online Second Opinion page does not itself list country-level restrictions, and Mass General Brigham operates a separate International Patient Center for patients from outside the US. Confirm directly which route — the online second opinion or the International Patient Center — fits an international request before submitting records.
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
- MGB-01: Mass General Brigham — Second Opinion, accessed 2026-09-21.
- MGB-02: Mass General Brigham — Online Second Opinions, accessed 2026-09-21.
- CC-01: Cleveland Clinic — Virtual Second Opinions, last verified 2026-07-11.
- PC-01: PinnacleCare — About Us and FAQs, last verified 2026-07-11.
- DDN: Diagnostic Detectives Network service statements: Medical Second Opinion, How It Works, and Contact.