If you walk into a regular doctor’s office, urgent care, or ER anywhere in the United States with a fresh tick bite, there’s a very good chance they’ll give you a single dose of doxycycline and send you on your way. Why do they do that? Because UpToDate, the medical playbook most mainstream facilities rely on, tells them to.

UpToDate is what’s called a clinical reference — basically an online handbook doctors use to look up quick guidance on symptoms, treatments, and protocols. In busy settings, doctors don’t have time to dig through research or debate guidelines. They open UpToDate, skim the recommendation, and follow it. Period.

And when it comes to tick bites, UpToDate simply incorporates the IDSA Lyme guidelines — which is where the one‑dose doxycycline advice comes from.

Now, the Lyme community knows from long, painful experience that the one‑dose doxy rule is bad news. (See: I found a tick. Now what? and Single dose of doxy after tick bite only prevents rash—not Lyme disease.) But until recently, people who found an embedded tick didn’t have many options beyond the standard “one and done.”

Now they do.

Consult a Lyme-literate provider, pronto

Ravel Health — a national telehealth provider focused on Lyme disease and other complex chronic conditions — has launched a new service designed to give patients quick, reliable help after a tick bite.

Their Acute Tick Bite Package is available in all 50 states, Washington DC and Puerto Rico. It offers timely access to clinicians who specialize in tick‑borne diseases and understand the importance of early, appropriate care.

Patients start with a 15‑minute telehealth visit where they can talk through what happened, review symptoms, and get guidance on whether treatment makes sense. If medication is appropriate, clinicians can prescribe commonly used antibiotics for early tick‑borne infections, following ILADS‑aligned clinical guidelines.

Prescriptions go straight to the patient’s preferred pharmacy, and medication costs are handled separately through insurance or out‑of‑pocket payment.

The package also includes two follow‑up check‑ins through secure messaging, giving patients a chance to report new symptoms or ask questions as they monitor their health. Educational materials and symptom‑tracking tools help people know what to watch for in the days and weeks after a bite — something most urgent‑care visits don’t provide.

Ravel Health emphasizes that prompt evaluation after a tick bite may help reduce the risk of developing persistent symptoms. The service costs $295 as a one‑time package, with no membership or subscription required. (Currently, there’s an “early access for the community” special price of $195.)

With this launch, Ravel Health adds another option for recently bitten people seeking medical providers who understand Lyme disease and other tick‑borne conditions. It’s been a crying need for a long, long time.

Click here for more information.

TOUCHED BY LYME is written by Dorothy Kupcha Leland, President of LymeDisease.org. She is co-author of Finding Resilience: A Teen’s Journey Through Lyme Disease and of When Your Child Has Lyme Disease: A Parent’s Survival Guide. Contact her at dleland@lymedisease.org.