8 Google Ads and YouTube policy rules bear on clinics and medical practices

Platform rules are about ad approval and account risk, not law, and policies change. These are the Google Ads and YouTube rules whose wording is about licensed practitioners, boards and clinics. They run when Google Ads and YouTube is selected in the checker.

1. CG-PLT-003 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Google limits services that prescribe, dispense or sell prescription drugs online. Advertisers must apply, and online pharmacies and telemedicine providers in the United States need accreditation (NABP or LegitScript) and Google certification. An ad that sells a named prescription drug online without that is likely to be disapproved.

   Source: Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy (prescription drug services, unauthorized pharmacies, United States); Google Ads Prescription drug services policy

   Safer wording: Advertise the clinical service and who decides on treatment. Get Google healthcare certification and LegitScript or NABP accreditation before naming a prescription drug.

   Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy, Google Ads Prescription drug services policy

2. CG-PLT-005 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Selling prescription drugs online without a prescription, from foreign suppliers, or for crypto payment violates drug-sale laws and every major ad platform's rules.

   Source: FDCA 503(b); Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy; Meta Advertising Standards, Drugs and pharmaceuticals

   Safer wording: Offer a clinical service in which a licensed clinician decides whether to prescribe, and fill prescriptions only through licensed US pharmacies.

   Meta Advertising Standards, Drugs and pharmaceuticals, Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy · Needs counsel review

3. CG-PLT-008 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Pinterest does not allow ads for clinical trial recruitment. Google does not allow them in most locations. Microsoft Advertising and Amazon Ads list clinical trials and trial recruitment as prohibited. X, Nextdoor and Reddit allow them only with conditions (X prior authorization, no misleading expectations or claims of safety, registration on ClinicalTrials.gov and IRB oversight).

   Source: Pinterest Advertising Guidelines (healthcare products and services); Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy (clinical trial recruitment); Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy; Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy; X Ads healthcare policy; Nextdoor Ads Policy; Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy

   Safer wording: Send people to the registry listing or the sponsor site instead of buying a platform ad, or check the platform and location rules and any IRB approval first.

   Nextdoor Ads Policy, Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy, Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy, Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy, Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy, Pinterest Advertising Guidelines, X Ads healthcare policy

4. CG-PLT-013 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Pinterest does not allow claims regarding the prevention or cure of disease, and Google does not allow non-approved products marketed as safe or effective for preventing, curing or treating a particular disease. Meta bars claims to cure, heal or eliminate incurable diseases (diabetes, herpes, thyroid conditions, psoriasis, cancer, autism, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, HIV and others), even from health professionals. Reddit, Amazon, Outbrain, Nextdoor, Apple and Taboola bar implying that a product or supplement diagnoses, prevents or cures disease.

   Source: Pinterest Advertising Guidelines (healthcare products and services); Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy (unapproved substances); Meta Advertising Standards, Unrealistic outcomes; Meta Advertising Standards, Health and wellness; Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy; Amazon Ads Claims and substantiation policy; Outbrain Advertising Guidelines; Nextdoor Ads Policy; Apple Advertising Services policies; Taboola Health Supplement Advertising Guidelines

   Safer wording: Say what the service does ("screening", "education", "treatment plans reviewed by a clinician") and leave out prevent, cure and reverse.

   Meta Advertising Standards, Unrealistic outcomes, Meta Advertising Standards, Health and wellness, Taboola Health Supplement Advertising Guidelines, Outbrain Advertising Guidelines, Nextdoor Ads Policy, Apple Advertising Services policies, Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy, Amazon Ads Claims and substantiation policy, Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy, Pinterest Advertising Guidelines

5. CG-PLT-018 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Google does not allow claims that entice the user with an improbable result as the likely outcome, and YouTube ads may not carry exaggerated or inaccurate claims. Meta bars claims of unrealistic results within specific timeframes. Microsoft, Amazon and Taboola bar a specific amount or rate of weight loss in a defined period.

   Source: Google Ads Misrepresentation policy (unreliable claims); YouTube and Discover Feed ad requirements (exaggerated or inaccurate claims); Meta Advertising Standards, Unrealistic outcomes; Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy; Amazon Ads Claims and substantiation policy; Taboola Policy FAQ health and beauty; Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy

   Safer wording: Drop the timeframe and the number. Describe the service and what a clinician will assess.

   Meta Advertising Standards, Unrealistic outcomes, Taboola Policy FAQ health and beauty, Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy, Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy, Amazon Ads Claims and substantiation policy, Google Ads Misrepresentation policy, YouTube and Discover Feed ad requirements

6. CG-PLT-019 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Health is a sensitive interest category on Google. Advertisers in it cannot use advertiser-curated audiences, which include customer match, your data segments, audience expansion and lookalike segments. Meta's Business Tools Terms bar sharing health information and say the names and criteria of custom audiences must not reflect or imply it. Amazon prohibits audiences built from purchases or views of healthcare products and from advertiser data. Targeting by health status can also turn a visit to a clinic site into a disclosure of health information.

   Source: Google Ads Restricted targeting in personalized advertising policy (sensitive interest categories, health); Meta Business Tools Terms (Business Tool Data); Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy

   Safer wording: Use contextual or predefined audiences for health offers. Do not build segments from patient lists or condition pages.

   Meta Business Tools Terms, Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy, Google Ads Restricted targeting in personalized advertising policy

7. CG-PLT-020 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Telehealth and telemedicine ads are gated. Google allows telemedicine providers only with LegitScript certification plus Google certification, and Meta requires telehealth providers that promote prescription drugs to be LegitScript certified and authorized. LinkedIn allows telehealth only in the United States with prior authorization, X allows licensed providers only in the states where they are licensed and with prior authorization, Reddit asks for industry certifications and a sales representative, Microsoft preapproves telemedicine providers that sell prescription drugs, and Amazon Ads does not accept telemedicine as display ads in its store.

   Source: Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy, additional sections; Meta Advertising Standards, Drugs and pharmaceuticals; LinkedIn Advertising Policies; X Ads healthcare policy; Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy; Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy; Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy; LegitScript Healthcare Merchant Certification

   Safer wording: Get LegitScript certification if you prescribe or sell prescription drugs, then ask each platform for its telehealth authorization before the ad runs, and name only the states where you are licensed.

   Meta Advertising Standards, Drugs and pharmaceuticals, LegitScript Healthcare Merchant Certification, Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy, additional sections, Microsoft Advertising Healthcare and Pharmaceutical policy, Reddit Ads Healthcare Products and Services policy, Amazon Ads Healthcare products and services policy, Google Ads Healthcare and medicines policy, LinkedIn Advertising Policies, X Ads healthcare policy

8. CG-PLT-031 · Warns · Citation checked against stored text

   Meta's Business Tools Terms bar sharing Business Tool Data that includes or is based on health information, and say the names and criteria of events and conversions must not reflect or imply it. Google's customer data policies bar using conversions tied to health or medical information, such as purchases of medical services or prescription drugs, for enhanced conversions or store sales uploads. Tracking tags on clinic sites can also be a HIPAA problem.

   Source: Meta Business Tools Terms (Business Tool Data); Google Ads Customer data policies

   Safer wording: Do not send events whose name or data reveals a condition, a prescription or a patient status. Measure at the level of the campaign, with no health detail.

   Meta Business Tools Terms, Google Ads Customer data policies · Needs counsel review

None of our sample wording triggers a Google Ads and YouTube rule, so no example is shown. The rules above are still part of the set.

109 federal and general rules matched to clinics and medical practices run next to the Google Ads and YouTube ones. The ones that weigh most:

1. CG-ABS-003 · Blocks approval · Citation checked against stored text

   Claims of no risk or no side effects are unsubstantiated safety claims.

   Source: FTC Act section 5; FTC Health Products Compliance Guidance; 21 CFR 202.1 (prescription drug advertising, fair balance)

   Safer wording: State known risks and side effects fairly, or say who should talk to a clinician first.

   21 CFR 202.1 · Needs counsel review

2. CG-CSR-001 · Blocks approval · Citation checked against stored text

   Prescribing a controlled substance without a real evaluation, records or follow-up violates the Controlled Substances Act and DEA telemedicine rules.

   Source: 21 U.S.C. 829 and 841(h); 21 CFR 1306.04 (prescription issued for a legitimate medical purpose); 21 CFR 1306.05 (manner of issuance, so a prescription must carry the patient and practitioner details); FTC Act section 5

   Safer wording: Do not advertise controlled substances. A licensed clinician must decide whether to prescribe after a real evaluation.

   21 CFR 1306.04, 21 U.S.C. 829, 21 CFR 1306.05 · Needs counsel review

3. CG-DEA-003 · Blocks approval · Citation checked against stored text

   Offering to fill a prescription for a controlled substance based only on an online questionnaire is a listed example of an internet distribution violation.

   Source: 21 U.S.C. 841 subsection (h) lists offering to fill a controlled substance prescription based solely on a consumer's online medical questionnaire as an example of a violation

   Safer wording: Do not tie a controlled substance prescription to a questionnaire alone. Describe a live evaluation by a licensed practitioner who decides if a prescription is appropriate.

   21 U.S.C. 841 · Needs counsel review

4. CG-EFF-014 · Blocks approval · Citation checked against stored text

   Claims of instant, one-visit or universal results, or of working where all else fails, promise outcomes no clinic can substantiate.

   Source: FTC Act section 5; FTC Health Products Compliance Guidance; FTC Endorsement Guides, 16 CFR Part 255

   Safer wording: Remove the promise of speed or certainty. Say what the service is and that results vary.

   16 CFR Part 255 · Needs counsel review

Everything for the industry is on the clinics and medical practices page, and all Google Ads and YouTube rules for any industry are on the Google Ads and YouTube page.