Our Commitment
Why Digital Accessibility Matters in Telehealth and How Open Water Rx Serves All Patients
Open Water Rx is a nationwide telehealth platform providing GLP-1 weight loss programs, NAD+ longevity therapies, and men's sexual health services across all 50 states. Because our entire patient experience — from initial health evaluation through ongoing provider communication — happens online, digital accessibility is not an afterthought. It is a core requirement. We are committed to ensuring that patients with visual impairments, hearing impairments, motor disabilities, cognitive differences, or any other accessibility need can fully participate in our telehealth services without barriers.
Our website and patient portal are designed to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA and WCAG 2.2 Level AA standards. These internationally recognized guidelines, developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), define how to make web content more accessible to people with a wide range of disabilities. Conformance with WCAG 2.1 AA means our content is perceivable (text alternatives for images, captions for video, sufficient color contrast), operable (keyboard-only navigation, skip links, no seizure-inducing flashes), understandable (clear labels, consistent navigation, readable text), and robust (compatible with assistive technologies including screen readers).
We test our platform regularly with assistive technologies including NVDA, JAWS, and Apple VoiceOver screen readers. All interactive elements — navigation menus, buttons, form fields, accordions, modals, and calls-to-action — are fully operable using keyboard-only navigation with visible focus indicators. We respect the prefers-reduced-motion CSS media query, automatically disabling animations for users who prefer reduced motion. Browser zoom up to 200 percent maintains full content and functionality without horizontal scrolling or text truncation. High-contrast display modes are supported throughout the site. If you encounter any accessibility barrier while using Open Water Rx, we encourage you to contact us immediately at members@openwaterrx.com or (941) 315-5217 so we can resolve it.
Screen Reader Compatibility
All images include descriptive alt text. Form fields have associated labels readable by screen readers. ARIA landmarks identify page regions (header, main, footer, navigation). Live regions announce dynamic content changes. Skip links allow bypassing repetitive navigation.
Keyboard Navigation
Every interactive element — links, buttons, form inputs, dropdowns, accordions, and modal dialogs — is reachable and operable using only the Tab, Shift+Tab, Enter, Space, and Escape keys. Focus indicators are clearly visible with a 2px outline in our brand gold color.
Color Contrast & Readability
All text meets WCAG AA contrast ratios of at least 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text. Body text uses a minimum 14px font size with 1.6 line height for comfortable reading. Information is never conveyed by color alone — icons and labels accompany all color-coded indicators.
Motion & Animation Preferences
We detect the prefers-reduced-motion setting and disable all non-essential animations, scroll-triggered transitions, and auto-playing content. Essential functionality remains fully accessible without motion. No content is hidden behind timed animations.
Accessibility in Telehealth: A Legal and Ethical Imperative
As a telehealth platform serving patients nationwide, Open Water Rx recognizes that accessibility is both a legal obligation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, and an ethical imperative. Patients with disabilities deserve equal access to healthcare services, including online weight loss consultations, NAD+ therapy evaluations, and men's health assessments. Our accessibility statement reflects our ongoing commitment to removing barriers and continuously improving our digital experience for all users.
If you are dissatisfied with our response to an accessibility concern, you have the right to file a formal complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights. However, we strongly encourage you to contact us first at members@openwaterrx.com so we can address your concern directly and promptly.
Digital Accessibility in Online Healthcare Services
Telehealth platforms like Open Water Rx must meet higher accessibility standards than typical e-commerce websites because our patients rely on digital interfaces to access medical care. For patients using screen readers, every form field in our health evaluation must have properly associated labels and ARIA attributes. For patients with motor impairments, every interactive element must be fully operable via keyboard navigation alone. For patients with cognitive differences, our content must use plain language, clear headings, and consistent navigation patterns that reduce cognitive load during what can already be a stressful health assessment process.
We conduct regular automated accessibility audits using industry-standard tools and manual testing with assistive technology users. Our development team prioritizes accessibility in every new feature release, conducting accessibility reviews before deployment. We maintain an internal accessibility checklist based on WCAG 2.1 AA success criteria, ensuring that new components meet minimum contrast ratios, keyboard accessibility requirements, and screen reader compatibility before they reach production.
Open Water Rx also recognizes that accessibility extends beyond our website to our patient communications. Email notifications use semantic HTML with proper heading structures. PDF documents, when provided, are tagged for screen reader compatibility. Our telehealth video platform, when used for synchronous visits, supports captioning and is compatible with screen magnification software. We are committed to ensuring that every touchpoint in the patient journey is accessible.
How We Test for Accessibility
Our accessibility testing program combines automated scanning, manual code review, and real-world assistive technology testing. Automated tools catch issues like missing alt text, insufficient color contrast, and improper heading hierarchies. Manual testing verifies keyboard navigation paths, focus management, and ARIA implementation accuracy. Real-world testing involves our team navigating the full patient journey — from homepage to intake completion — using only a keyboard and screen reader, simulating the experience of users with visual and motor disabilities.
We test across multiple browser and assistive technology combinations including Chrome with NVDA, Safari with VoiceOver, and Firefox with JAWS. Mobile accessibility is equally important, so we test iOS VoiceOver and Android TalkBack on physical devices. Touch target sizes, gesture alternatives, and mobile screen reader behavior are all evaluated as part of our release process.