Healthcare ads disapproved or account suspended: causes, fixes and appeals for practices

A practice launches a campaign for a new treatment, and the next morning the ads show Disapproved, or an email says the whole account is on hold. Health is one of the areas where Google Ads applies the tightest rules, and the fix depends on which kind of problem you have: one ad, the landing page, the targeting, a certification the account does not hold, or a pattern Google treats as a repeat or serious violation. Guessing, resubmitting the same ad, or opening a fresh account can turn a fixable problem into a permanent one.

This guide is for owners and marketing staff at independent practices, clinics and health businesses who run search or display ads and have hit a disapproval, a limited status, a strike or a suspension. It walks through the healthcare policies that trigger problems, the landing page and targeting causes, the appeal steps and limits Google publishes, and what not to do while you wait. For writing ad copy that avoids these problems in the first place, see our healthcare ad policy basics, for the page the ad points to, see our guide to healthcare landing pages, and if the problem is your listing on Maps rather than your ads, see our guide to a suspended Google Business Profile. For state laws that limit location targeting near clinics and hospitals, see our guide to geofencing ads near health facilities. Microsoft has its own healthcare rules, covered in our guide to Microsoft Advertising for medical practices. For the controls and generated assets in Google’s all-channel campaign type, see our guide to Performance Max for healthcare advertisers. App store listings have their own health rules, covered in our guide to App Store and Google Play rules for health apps.

The short version

• Find out what kind of problem you have first. A disapproved ad, an ad that runs only in limited places, a temporary account hold after a strike, and an account suspension each have their own fix and their own appeal path.
• Read the policy named in the status. Google Ads Help says to hover over the Disapproved status or add the Policy details column, then read the policy that is affecting the ad.
• Check the landing page, not only the ad. Google says a disapproval can come from the assets, the ad or the landing page, and the restricted drug terms policy covers ads, landing pages and keywords.
• Certain health topics need certification or cannot be advertised. Prescription drug services such as telemedicine, addiction services and health insurance need certification in the United States; speculative and experimental treatments, including stem cell and PRP therapies, are not allowed outside a narrow exception.
• Appeals have limits. Google Ads Help sets a limit of 3 appeals per ad, asks for at least 24 hours between appeals on the same ads, and from July 21, 2026, does not offer in-account appeals for decisions more than 6 months old.
• Never open a new account to get around a suspension. Google’s Circumventing systems policy treats new accounts after a suspension, and variations of disapproved ads or domains, as an egregious violation that leads to suspension without warning.

Disapproved, limited, on hold or suspended: four different problems

Google Ads uses separate statuses for problems at the ad level and at the account level, and the response differs for each.

• Disapproved ad. Google Ads Help says a disapproved ad cannot run until the policy violation is fixed and the ad is reviewed again. The rest of the account keeps running.
• Eligible (limited). The Healthcare and medicines policy says that when a campaign targets allowed locations and the domain is properly certified, the ad is labeled Eligible (limited) and can run in allowed locations. The ad runs, but only in allowed places or with allowed settings.
• Temporary account hold. Under Google’s strike system for repeat violations, a first strike puts the account on hold for 3 days and a second strike for 7 days. Accounts on hold cannot run any ads, but you can still sign in and see reports.
• Account suspension. A third strike, an egregious violation, a billing problem or suspected unauthorized access can suspend the account. No ads run until the suspension is lifted on appeal, and for egregious violations Google says you will not be allowed to advertise again.

Start with the notification email and the Policy manager page in the account (Tools, then Troubleshooting, then Policy manager). Write down the exact policy name Google gives, the date, and which ads, assets or URLs it lists. That record is what you will work from and what you will refer to in an appeal.

Healthcare policies that trigger disapprovals

Google’s Healthcare and medicines policy says ads and destinations are expected to follow appropriate laws and industry standards, that certain healthcare content cannot be advertised at all, and that other content can only be advertised in certain locations by advertisers who have applied and been approved. These are the parts that come up for practices and health businesses.

• Restricted drug terms. Google restricts prescription drug terms in ads, landing pages and keywords. For campaigns targeting the United States, Canada or New Zealand, the policy says you do not need certification to use prescription drug terms in ads and landing pages, but you must be certified to use them as keywords. A med spa bidding on a neurotoxin brand name or a weight loss clinic bidding on a GLP-1 drug name falls under this.
• Prescription drug services. Google restricts services related to online prescribing, dispensing and sale of prescription drugs, and names online pharmacies and telemedicine providers as examples. These advertisers must apply. In the United States, the policy says telemedicine providers must hold a third-party certification Google names on the policy page and must also be certified with Google.
• Speculative and experimental treatments. Google does not allow promotion of speculative or experimental medical treatments, or of cell and gene therapies. The examples it lists include stem cell therapy, cellular (non-stem) therapy, gene therapy and platelet rich plasma (PRP). In the United States, the exception covers FDA licensed or approved cell or gene therapies promoted by the entity that holds the license or approval, and ads that are exclusively educational or informational.
• Unapproved substances. Google does not allow promotion of items on its list of unapproved pharmaceuticals and supplements, products containing hCG in relation to weight loss, products that imply they are as effective as prescription drugs, products marketed as safe or effective for a disease without government approval, and products that have been subject to government or regulatory action or warning.
• Addiction services. To advertise recovery-oriented drug and alcohol addiction services in the United States, the policy says you must be certified by a third-party program Google names on the policy page and also certified with Google, and that services not eligible for that certification are not allowed to advertise them.
• Health insurance. In the United States, Google requires certification to advertise health and medical insurance coverage. Ads only for dental, vision or travel health coverage are not restricted under this policy.

If the ad was disapproved because the account is not certified and the business meets the requirements, the restricted drug terms policy says to apply for healthcare-related advertising, with a separate application for each location or group of locations. If the business does not meet the requirements, the fix is to change the ad, the keywords and the landing page, not to keep appealing.

Claims that trigger disapprovals

Health claims are another trigger, and they are also the claims that state and federal advertising law reaches. Google’s Unreliable claims policy, part of its Misrepresentation policy, does not allow these.

• Unproven cures. Claims of cures for incurable medical ailments, with examples such as miracle cures for arthritis, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease or cancer, and cure-all products.
• Unrealistic weight loss. Claims of unrealistic weight loss within a set time or with little effort.
• Harmful health claims. Content that promotes harmful health claims, or that relates to a current major health crisis and contradicts authoritative scientific consensus.
• Results in testimonials. The policy says testimonials that claim specific results must include a visible disclaimer that specific results are not promised and that results can vary, and that if an ad promises results, a clear and easily accessible refund policy is required. It adds that Google may defer to local regulatory guidelines for health-related claims, including testimonials.

The wider Misrepresentation policy also bars offering services you cannot deliver, including not having the right licenses or qualifications, and implying support from another brand, organization or government entity when you do not have it. For a practice, that covers ads for a treatment no one on staff is licensed to provide and ads that suggest an endorsement from a medical society or agency. The legal side of these claims is covered in our guides to success rate and outcome claims and stem cell clinic advertising.

Targeting problems: health is a sensitive interest category

Health flags are not only about the words in the ad. Google’s Health in personalized advertising policy says health is a sensitive interest category. It includes physical or mental health conditions, treatments for chronic conditions, health issues of intimate body parts or functions, invasive procedures including cosmetic surgery, surgical procedures or injections, and disabilities.

For ads in a sensitive interest category, Google says you can use predefined Google audiences but cannot use advertiser-curated audiences, which include Customer Match and your own data segments. Custom segments that use sensitive creative or point to sensitive landing pages are limited too. The policy gives 3 ways to fix a flagged ad: remove advertiser-curated audiences from the campaign, ad group and asset group settings; edit or remove the content that falls under the policy; or appeal if you believe the ads or site do not fall under it.

For a practice, one cause to check first is an uploaded patient or lead list used as an audience. Apart from the ad policy, uploading patient contact details to an ad platform raises HIPAA questions of its own, which are covered in our HIPAA marketing rules guide.

Landing page causes

Google Ads Help says the steps to fix a disapproval depend on the policy, and that the cause can be the assets, the ad or the landing page. Google’s Destination requirements list reasons a page can be disapproved even when its content is fine.

• Destination not working. The page does not function, is set up incorrectly, or returns an HTTP error to Google’s ad crawler on widely used devices. A misspelled final URL is one of Google’s own examples.
• Destination mismatch. The display URL domain does not match the final URL, or the final URL redirects to a different domain, or a tracking template leads to different content.
• Destination not crawlable. Google’s ad crawler cannot reach the page.
• Destination experience. The page is hard to navigate or unsafe. Google’s Circumventing systems policy separately names a pop-up that blocks access to the majority of the site’s content, so that Google cannot see the page, as a form of cloaking.

The healthcare policies also apply to the page. A restricted drug term, an unapproved product, a stem cell or PRP offer, or an unsupported cure claim anywhere on the landing page can disapprove an ad whose text is clean. Google Ads Help says that if you cannot or choose not to change the page, you can point the ad to a different landing page that meets the requirements.

How to fix and appeal a disapproved ad

Google Ads Help sets out these steps for a disapproved ad.

• Find the reason. In Ads or Ad groups, hover over the Disapproved status, or add the Policy details column, and select Read the policy.
• Fix the ad or asset. Edit the ad to comply and save it. Saving resubmits it, and it is reviewed again automatically.
• Fix or change the destination. Correct the page, or edit the ad to point to a page that meets the policy.
• Appeal when you have fixed it or believe Google made an error. From Policy manager or the Ads page, select Appeal, then choose Dispute decision or Made changes to comply with policy.
• Track the result. The Appeal history tab in Policy manager shows the status of each appeal and the number of ads whose status was updated.

Google Ads Help also sets limits on appeals.

• Each ad is limited to 3 appeals. After 3 unsuccessful appeals, you cannot appeal that ad again until you contact customer support.
• Wait at least 24 hours between appeals for the same ads or campaigns, or they may be marked as duplicates.
• If you have fixed the issue but the appeal fails or is marked as a duplicate, Google says not to keep resubmitting, and instead to make a minor edit to the ad text or final URL and save it so the system crawls it again.
• If Google sees indications that the appeals function is being misused, it may suspend processing of certain appeals until you contact support.
• Starting July 21, 2026, the in-account appeal is not available for policy decisions made more than 6 months earlier. For those, contact Google Ads support.

If you cannot fix the problem or choose not to, Google’s policy pages say to remove the ad to help prevent the account from being suspended later for repeated violations. Leaving disapproved ads in place carries that risk.

Strikes and temporary holds

Google’s strike system applies to a listed set of policies, and of those, unapproved substances is the one closest to health businesses. Under that system, the first violation brings a one-time warning by email. A further violation brings a first strike and a 3-day hold. A violation of the same policy within 90 days of the first strike brings a second strike and a 7-day hold, which Google calls the final notice. A third violation of the same policy within 90 days of the second strike suspends the account.

A hold does not end on its own. Google says the account stays on hold until you either acknowledge the strike or appeal it. To acknowledge it, you must remove or fix all violations in the account and complete an acknowledgement form affirming that you understand the policy and have removed the violating ads and assets. If you appeal the strike and lose, you still have to fix the violations and acknowledge the strike to release the hold.

Account suspensions and how to appeal them

Google’s account suspensions overview says that for egregious violations, the account is suspended immediately without prior warning. For repeat violations that lead to suspension, Google says it sends a warning at least 7 days before suspending. Google defines an egregious violation as one so serious that it is unlawful or poses significant harm to users. The list includes circumventing systems, coordinated deceptive practices, counterfeit goods, malicious software, prescription opioid painkillers, promotion of unauthorized pharmacies and unacceptable business practices. Offering prescription drugs without a prescription, or targeting locations where the business is not licensed, falls under the unauthorized pharmacies policy.

Accounts can also be suspended for billing reasons (promotional code abuse, a chargeback, suspicious payment activity or an unpaid balance), for unauthorized access, and for a Google Account whose age does not match the person. The Circumventing systems policy adds that an account may be suspended based on adverse regulatory warnings, settlements or rulings about the advertiser’s practices, or direct complaints from users or businesses. A health business that receives an FTC or FDA warning letter about its advertising should expect that letter to matter to its ad account too.

To appeal a suspension, Google says to use the Contact Us link in the notification at the top of the account, which opens the appeal form. Google’s tips are to put its best practices in place first, explain the situation for each policy involved, and complete advertiser verification if asked. Certain advertisers must pass verification to appeal, and after 3 failed verification attempts they cannot appeal. Google says accounts are only reinstated in compelling circumstances, such as a mistake, so be thorough, accurate and honest. Filing repeated appeals for the same suspension can lead Google to stop processing them, and suspected misuse can pause appeal processing for 7 days.

What not to do

These are the moves that can turn a disapproval into a permanent ban. Each is named in Google’s Circumventing systems policy, which Google treats as egregious.

• Do not open a new account after a suspension. Creating new accounts to re-enter the system after a suspension is listed as circumventing systems, and so is creating more accounts after suspension to keep breaking the rules.
• Do not reword a disapproved ad to slip past review. Creating variations of ads, domains or content that were disapproved, in order to bypass enforcement, is listed.
• Do not move the same ads to a new domain or another account. Creating new websites or accounts to show ads similar to ones already disapproved, and spreading violating ads across 2 or more accounts, are listed.
• Do not show Google one page and patients another. Showing a page that follows the rules to Google and different content to people is cloaking. Google says different languages, offers or location versions are fine as long as the promoted service is the same for everyone.
• Do not split certified services across accounts. Using 2 or more accounts to promote services for which you lack the needed certification is listed.
• Do not give false information in verification. Submitting false information to Google’s verification programs is listed.

If an agency or freelancer manages the account, ask them directly what changed before the disapproval or suspension. Google’s own best practices for multiple account abuse suggest checking with your agency, connecting each account to a real business, and resolving suspensions on linked accounts through appeal.

Questions to answer before you appeal

• Which exact policy did Google name, and on which ads, assets, keywords or URLs?
• Is the problem in the ad text, the keywords, the landing page, the targeting or the account’s certification?
• Does the treatment fall in a category that needs certification, or one Google does not allow at all?
• Does the landing page, or any page it links to, use a prescription drug term, an outcome claim, a testimonial with results, or a pop-up that hides the page?
• Does the campaign use an uploaded list or other advertiser-curated audience while promoting a health service?
• Has the account had a warning or strike under the same policy in the last 90 days?
• Who else has access to the account, and what did they change?
• Is the claim in the ad one your attorney would sign off on outside of Google’s rules?

Use and avoid

• Use: “Weight management visits with a licensed clinician. Book a consultation.” Avoid: “Lose 30 pounds in 30 days, no diet needed.”
• Use: “Joint pain evaluation and treatment options.” Avoid: “Stem cell and PRP injections that cure arthritis.”
• Use: “Telehealth visits with licensed providers in [state].” (after certification) Avoid: “Get [drug name] online today, no visit needed.”
• Use: “Results vary. Individual outcomes differ.” next to a results testimonial. Avoid: a testimonial with a specific result and no disclaimer.
• Use: a single account tied to the real practice, with appeals filed through it. Avoid: a second account, a new domain or a reworded copy of a disapproved ad.

An illustration

This example is invented. [Practice name], a med spa, runs search ads for its injectables and weight loss services. One morning, three ad groups show Disapproved. Policy manager names Restricted drug terms on the injectables ad group, Unreliable claims on a weight loss ad, and Health in personalized advertising on a campaign that uses an uploaded customer list.

The marketing lead fixes each one separately. For injectables, the keywords that are prescription drug brand names come out, since the account is not certified to target them, and the ads now refer to the treatment category. For weight loss, the headline promising a set number of pounds in a set time is replaced with a description of the visit, and the landing page testimonial now carries a visible results-vary note. For the targeting flag, the uploaded list is removed from the campaign, and the practice asks its attorney about how that list was built. The edits are saved, which sends them back for review, and the marketing lead files one appeal through Policy manager with Made changes to comply with policy and waits 24 hours before checking. Nobody opens a new account.

Checklist

• Record the exact policy name, date and affected ads, assets, keywords and URLs from the email and Policy manager.
• Decide whether the problem is a disapproval, a limited status, a strike hold or a suspension.
• Check the ad, the keywords and the landing page for restricted drug terms, outcome claims, unapproved products and experimental treatments.
• Confirm whether the service needs Google healthcare certification, and apply before advertising it if so.
• Remove advertiser-curated audiences from health campaigns.
• Test the final URL for errors, redirects, crawl blocks and pop-ups that hide the page.
• Fix first, then appeal once, then wait at least 24 hours.
• Remove ads you cannot fix instead of leaving them disapproved.
• For a strike, fix all violations and complete the acknowledgement form.
• For a suspension, appeal through the Contact Us link, explain each policy, and complete verification if asked.
• Never open a new account, new domain or reworded copy to get around enforcement.
• Have a health care attorney review health claims before resubmitting.

How we help

We build websites, local search, Google Ads and lead generation and AI front desk tools for independent practices and health businesses. For ad problems, that means reading the policy Google named, rewriting ads and landing pages to fit it, setting up Google Ads for practices without advertiser-curated audiences on health campaigns, and filing one clear appeal through your own account, with your attorney reviewing health claims. Our tools are built with HIPAA in mind. We confirm in writing what a BAA covers before any patient information flows through a tool, and if it is not covered, we do not route patient information through it. We are not a healthcare provider and we do not give legal or medical advice. For the wider rules, see our healthcare marketing rules guide.

Sources

• Google Ads: Healthcare and medicines policy
• Google Ads: Restricted drug terms policy
• Google Ads: Speculative and experimental medical treatment, cell therapies, and gene therapies
• Google Ads: Unapproved substances policy
• Google Ads: Unreliable claims policy
• Google Ads: Misrepresentation policy
• Google Ads: Health in personalized advertising
• Google Ads: Destination requirements
• Google Ads Help: Fix a disapproved ad or appeal a policy decision
• Google Ads: About enforcement procedures for repeat violations (strikes)
• Google Ads: Account suspensions overview
• Google Ads: Circumventing systems policy

More in Healthcare advertising guides