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Google won't let our clinic use lead form assets

The notice
Advertisements for healthcare-related content are not allowed for lead forms.
On this page

Google doesn't allow lead form assets for healthcare. Its lead form requirements say "Advertisements for healthcare-related content are not allowed for lead forms." They also say "Sensitive verticals or sub-verticals (for example, sexual content) aren't eligible for lead forms." So if your clinic, telehealth service or med spa can't add a lead form, or the asset was disapproved, the policy is working as written. It is not a setup error, and Google's requirements list no exception for healthcare. Send people to a landing page on your own site instead, with a HIPAA-compliant form, and measure the leads from there.

Curve Compliance gives you that form and the measurement behind it. Curve Forms are HIPAA-hosted intake and lead forms with ad attribution attached, and Curve sends the resulting conversions server-side to Google Ads, Meta Conversions API, TikTok, Microsoft and LinkedIn, with a fixed list of fields for each platform. Curve's team does the setup for you, with a BAA signed on every plan. Book a call with Curve.

What Google requires for lead forms

Google says "To use lead form assets, make sure that you have:" three things. Healthcare advertisers fail the second one:

  • "A good history of policy compliance."
  • "A Google Ads account in an eligible vertical or sub-vertical."
  • "A privacy policy for your business."

Why healthcare is out

Google lists the policies that are "particularly relevant to lead forms, and are often associated with disapprovals." Healthcare and medicines is one of them, with a flat rule: "Advertisements for healthcare-related content are not allowed for lead forms." Alcohol, gambling and political content get the same treatment.

Certification under Google's Healthcare and medicines policy decides which health ads can run at all. The lead form requirements don't extend that certification to lead forms, so a certified telehealth provider still sends people to its own site.

Lead forms would also keep what people type inside Google Ads until you export it. Google says "Google Ads stores leads for 60 days, so download your data often." For a clinic, answers about symptoms or treatments are not data you want sitting in an ad platform.

What to run instead

  1. Remove the lead form asset and point the ads at a landing page on your own site.
  2. Put a short form on that page. Ask for contact details and a preferred time, and leave clinical questions for intake. Curve Forms from Curve Compliance are HIPAA-hosted forms with ad attribution attached, so each lead is credited to the Google click that brought it.
  3. Check what else fires on the page. Curve Compliance's free website scan lists every pixel and tracker on a page, so you can see whether any tag could pick up what people type into the form.
  4. Send conversions back to Google Ads without health details. Curve Compliance sends Google Ads conversions server-side with a fixed list of fields and neutral event names, and detects PHI-like patterns before data reaches an ad platform.
  5. Keep the landing page inside Google's Healthcare and medicines rules, covered on our Healthcare and medicines page.

Don't work around it

  • Don't describe the business as something else to get lead forms. Misrepresenting what you sell to Google is a far bigger problem than a missing asset; see Google's Circumventing systems policy.
  • Don't run lead form ads through an affiliate or lead generation partner. Google says "Affiliate networks or lead generation businesses will not be allowed in our sole discretion."
  • Don't move health questions into vaguely worded form fields. The answers still describe a person's health, wherever the form lives.

Talk to Curve

Losing lead forms doesn't have to mean losing measurement. Curve's team sets up HIPAA-hosted Curve Forms with ad attribution attached and server-side conversions to Google Ads and your other platforms, keeps attribution through booking tools such as IntakeQ, Calendly and Jane, and detects PHI-like patterns before data reaches an ad platform. Setup is typically live in about a week, with a BAA signed on every plan. Book a call with Curve.

How Curve helps

  • Curve Forms are HIPAA-hosted intake and lead forms with ad attribution attached, built for the landing page Google sends patients to.
  • Sends conversions server-side to Google Ads, Meta Conversions API, TikTok, Microsoft and LinkedIn, with neutral event names and a fixed list of fields for each platform.
  • Detects PHI-like patterns, such as condition names and form answers, before data reaches an ad platform.
  • Keeps attribution through booking tools such as IntakeQ, Calendly and Jane, so booked patients are credited to the Google click that sent them.
  • Signs a BAA on every plan, and setup is done for you by Curve's team, typically live in about a week.

Frequently asked questions

Can a dental practice or med spa use Google lead form assets?

Google's requirements say "Advertisements for healthcare-related content are not allowed for lead forms." If your ads promote healthcare services, plan on a landing page form instead.

Is there a certification that unlocks lead forms for healthcare?

Google's lead form requirements don't list one. Healthcare certification covers which ads can run under the Healthcare and medicines policy, and the lead form page still says healthcare-related content is not allowed for lead forms.

What should a clinic use instead of a Google lead form?

A landing page on your own site with a short, HIPAA-compliant form. Curve Forms from Curve Compliance are HIPAA-hosted intake and lead forms with ad attribution attached, so the lead is still credited to the Google Ads click.

Do Meta and TikTok lead forms have the same problem?

They offer lead forms but restrict health questions on them. Meta says "Ads must not request health information, including physical health, mental health, medical treatments, medical conditions or disabilities without our prior permission." See Meta rejected our lead ad for health questions.

How does Curve help Google advertisers in healthcare?

Curve Compliance sends Google Ads conversions server-side with a fixed list of fields, detects PHI-like patterns before data reaches an ad platform, and keeps attribution through booking tools such as IntakeQ, Calendly and Jane. Book a call with Curve.

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