Google suspended us for "Promotion of unauthorized pharmacies"

What Google means by an unauthorized pharmacy

The policy is two lines long. Google does not allow "Offering prescription drugs without a prescription" or "Targeting locations where you are not licensed". It sits under Healthcare and medicines, but it does not start with a disapproved ad. Google judges the whole business, and says it "may review information from multiple sources including your ad, website, accounts, and third-party sources."

Telehealth sites get caught by how their pages read. Google's related Prescription drug services policy says it "errs on the side of caution", especially for "landing pages that link or refer to content that in any way appears to be or to facilitate the online prescription, dispensation, or sale of medicines." Patterns that can read as selling without a prescription:

• A medication name, dose and monthly price next to an order or checkout button, with no visible clinical visit in between.
• Copy that makes the prescription sound like a formality, such as promising treatment with no appointment.
• Campaigns targeting every US state when your clinicians are licensed in some of them.
• Links from your site straight into a pharmacy partner's ordering pages.

Why this suspension is harder than a strike

Several healthcare sub-policies, such as Prescription drug services, work through disapprovals and a warning at least 7 days before any suspension. Unauthorized pharmacies does not. Google lists "Promotion of unauthorized pharmacies" among its egregious policies, next to Circumventing systems and Unacceptable business practices, and suspends as soon as it detects a violation. Accounts are reinstated "in compelling circumstances, and when there is good reason". Google gives a mistake as its example, so the appeal has to show either that Google misread the business or exactly what changed.

The appeal mechanics, advertiser verification and what a suspended account can still do are the same for every suspension and are covered in Google Ads suspended our healthcare account. This page covers what is specific to the pharmacy notice.

Build the evidence before you appeal

Google's tip for egregious suspensions is to explain your situation for each violating policy and to be "thorough, accurate, and honest". For this notice, an explanation is far stronger with documents behind it, so assemble the proof first:

1. Name your business model. In the US, Google allows telemedicine providers accredited by LegitScript's Healthcare Merchant Certification Program, and online pharmacies accredited by LegitScript or the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy (NABP). "Advertisers must also be certified with Google", and Google warns: "Do not apply for a category that does not match your business model."
2. Get the accreditation in place, and keep the certificate, your prescribers' state licenses and your pharmacy partner's license or accreditation together for the appeal.
3. Make the clinical step unmissable on the website: a consultation or intake with a licensed clinician comes before any medication is offered, and the site says where you are licensed. For GLP-1 offers, check what Google and Meta allow for GLP-1 advertising.
4. Match location targeting to your licenses in every campaign, so no ad reaches a state where you can't treat patients.
5. File one appeal through the notice in the suspended account. Say what Google may have seen, what you changed, and which documents prove it. Google's certification application rules are listed on our Healthcare and medicines page.

What not to do

Don't keep selling prescription products through ads without the certification Google requires, and don't open a new account to carry on. Google's Circumventing systems policy names "creating new accounts to re-enter the system" after a suspension decision, and "Using several accounts, either gradually or all at once, to promote products or services for which you lack the necessary Google Ads certifications". Either one adds a second egregious violation to the first. See Google suspended our account for "Circumventing systems".

Don't show Google a compliant page and patients a different one either. That is cloaking, and it falls under the same policy. If you are weighing a fresh start on another account or domain, read should we open a new ad account after a restriction? first.

Talk to Curve

A pharmacy suspension is the right moment to put every part of your patient funnel in order, including what your tracking sends. Curve's team does the setup for you, typically live in about a week (it varies case by case), and your conversions reach Meta, Google, TikTok, Microsoft and LinkedIn server-side, with PHI-like patterns detected before data reaches an ad platform and attribution kept through booking tools such as IntakeQ, Calendly and Jane. To see what your site sends today, book a call with Curve.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Google Advertising Policies Help: Unauthorized pharmacies
• Google Advertising Policies Help: Healthcare and medicines
• Google Advertising Policies Help: Prescription drug services
• Google Advertising Policies Help: Google Ads account suspensions overview
• Google Advertising Policies Help: Circumventing systems

Last verified September 29, 2026

Related pages

• Google Ads Suspended Your Healthcare Account? What to DoGoogle Ads suspended your clinic's account? Tell an egregious suspension from a strike, pass verification, appeal via Contact Us, and skip the new account.
• Google Ads Healthcare Policy: Why Your Ads Were RejectedWhy Google disapproves telehealth and med spa ads under Healthcare and medicines, what certification it requires, and how to resubmit or appeal.
• Google Ads Circumventing Systems Suspension: What to DoSuspended for Circumventing systems? What Google counts as cloaking or multiple account abuse, and how a healthcare advertiser should appeal.
• Should We Open a New Ad Account After a Restriction?Opening a new ad account, Page or Business Manager to get past a restriction breaks Meta's and Google's rules. Here is the legitimate path instead.
• Google Ads ED Telehealth Ads: Sexual Health Policy GuideED telehealth ads limited or disapproved by Google? What the Sexual health and wellness policy allows, the certification it needs, and how to fix the ads.
• Microsoft Ads Disapproved Telehealth Ads? Preapproval GuideMicrosoft Advertising disapproved your telehealth ads? Why prescription services need preapproval, the US accreditation rules, and how to request an exception.
• Snapchat Rejected Your GLP-1 or Telehealth Ad? What to DoSnapchat rejected your GLP-1, weight loss or prescription ad? Why Snap requires pre-approval, its US targeting limits, and how to fix the creative.