Meta and Google for GLP-1 telehealth
GLP-1 Weight Loss
Semaglutide and tirzepatide programs sold online under a prescriber. The largest telehealth category by spend and the one the platforms, the FDA and 35 state attorneys general are all watching at once.
How it is sold
The model, before the rules.
An async intake form, sometimes a short video visit where state law requires one, then a prescriber review. Branded programs route the prescription to a retail or manufacturer pharmacy at cash price. Compounded programs route it to a 503A or 503B pharmacy that ships vials or pens monthly on a subscription. FDA declared the tirzepatide shortage resolved in December 2024 and the semaglutide shortage in February 2025, and the enforcement grace periods for compounded copies ended in spring 2025. In March and June 2026 the agency sent warning letters to 55 telehealth companies for calling compounded products equivalent to the approved drugs or branding them under the company's own name. The model still works; the claims that used to sell it do not.
How it gets restricted
Four things restrict a GLP-1 account. Naming the drug in an ad or a keyword without certification. Before-and-after bodies, scales, or a hook aimed at the reader ("tired of the weight?"), which trips Meta's personal-attributes rule. A landing page that reads like a pharmacy: product, price, add to cart, medication shipped. And pixel events named after the drug, which move the whole account into Meta's restricted health tier. Since 2026 there is a fifth: any line that calls a compounded product the same as Ozempic or Wegovy, which the platforms now read as a prescription-drug claim and FDA reads as misbranding.
Paid outlookCertification first
Policy by platform
Where a platform asks for LegitScript, it means LegitScript certification: the third-party check Meta and Google require before a telehealth business can name a prescription drug in an ad. It certifies the business, its prescribers and its pharmacies. It does not change what a drug is.
- Meta
- Online pharmacies and telehealth providers must hold active LegitScript certification and obtain Meta's written authorization before any ad references a prescription drug. Ads target 18 and over in the US, Canada or New Zealand only and carry a consult-a-licensed-professional disclaimer. Weight-loss ads separately require 18+ targeting, no inferiority framing about the body, no fat-pinching close-ups. Program and provider ads that name no drug can run without authorization. Meta's page does not mention compounded drugs by name; in practice compounded and branded programs are reviewed under the same rule.
- Google Ads
- Prescription drug services certification is required to serve ads and to bid on keywords containing prescription drug terms in the US. Google accepts LegitScript or NABP accreditation as the first step. Products containing hCG for weight loss are prohibited outright. Program and clinic intent ("medical weight loss online", "GLP-1 program") is open without certification.
- TikTok
- Prescription medicine is not an allowed ad subject in the US. Weight-management ads must target 18+, promote a healthy lifestyle, and cannot shame bodies, suggest an ideal body type, or claim results without diet and exercise. Awareness for the program and the providers only.
Policy pages read 2026-08-30. Meta: Drugs and pharmaceuticals · Meta: Health and wellness · Meta: Personal attributes · Google: Healthcare and medicines · Google: Prescription drug services certification. Full policy tracker
What we run
The plan for glp-1 weight loss.
- Channels
- Google Search on program intent from day one, drug-term keywords once certification clears. Meta on program-explainer and provider-led creative. TikTok for the brand and the provider, never for the drug.
- Creative that passes
- How the program works, who the prescriber is, what the first month costs, which states we serve. No bodies, no numbers on a scale, no second-person hooks. Compounded programs say "compounded, not FDA-approved" in the ad and on the page.
- Landing page
- A program page, not a product page. Eligibility, the visit, the medication options in plain language, pricing, prescriber credentials, and the LegitScript seal. Add-to-cart does not appear anywhere.
- Tracking
- Server-side events with generic names (lead, qualified, booked, purchase) and only hashed identifiers. The ad click ID rides a bridge token into the intake platform, so the consult and the prescription land on the campaign that produced them even though the visitor left our page to book.
What we measure
- CPQL
- Cost per qualified lead: someone who completed intake and met the program's eligibility rules.
- Consult booked
- Prescriber review scheduled or async visit submitted, attributed to the campaign.
- Rx issued
- Prescription written, reported back from the intake platform.
- 90-day retention
- Share of new patients still on the subscription at month three.
Reported weekly by campaign from the tracking installed in the first two weeks. We publish the definitions, not a benchmark, because the number depends on your price, your states and your pharmacy.
Commitments
What is done by which day.
Every live ad, keyword and landing page read against the three policies, with the flags listed
Server-side tracking live with the click ID carried into your intake platform
First creative batch pre-cleared and submitted for review
Weekly report on CPQL, consult booked and Rx issued by campaign
Days count from kickoff. Certification timelines belong to LegitScript and the platforms, so campaigns that need drug terms start on program intent and add them when approval lands.
GLP-1 weight loss questions
What brands in this category ask first.
Can we advertise compounded semaglutide on Meta?
With LegitScript certification and Meta's written authorization, a certified telehealth provider can run prescription-drug ads. The harder question is the claim. Since the shortages were resolved, an ad or page that presents a compounded product as a substitute for the approved drug draws FDA attention and platform review. We write the ad around the program and disclose compounding plainly.
We are not certified yet. Can anything run in the meantime?
Program and provider ads that name no drug can run on Meta and Google today. Certification usually takes weeks to a few months depending on how complete the application is, so we start the campaign on program intent and add drug terms when the certification clears.
Why did our pixel get restricted when the ads were approved?
Meta reviews the account's data, not only its ads. A pixel firing events named after a drug or a health condition, or sending URL paths that contain one, moves the account into the restricted health tier and cuts off the conversion events. The fix is server-side delivery with generic event names, which is what we install in the first two weeks.
Can we bid on Ozempic or Wegovy as keywords?
Only with Google's prescription drug services certification, and brand names are also trademarks, so the legal exposure is separate from the policy exposure. Most programs do better bidding on program intent and letting the medication pages rank organically.
Does the tracking touch the patient's weight or diagnosis?
No. Nothing from the intake form reaches an ad platform. The platforms receive a hashed identifier and a generic event name, and the tracking runs under a signed BAA.
Next step
Start with the audit.
We read your live ads, landing pages and pixel against the rules on this page and send back the flags and the plan. If the account is already restricted, the rescue is the faster door.
Growth audit
See where your growth is leaking.
We audit the funnel, the tracking, and the compliance posture, then hand you the roadmap. The people writing it have run the same funnel from the inside. You keep it whether or not we work together.
- Reviewed
- Funnel, tracking, and compliance posture
- Discussed
- One 30-minute call with the operator on your account
- Delivered
- A written roadmap within 5 business days