Google to reject ads for many stem cell, cellular, and gene therapies as 'unproven or experimental medical techniques'

[xeni]

Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2019/09/06/google-to-reject-ads-for-many.html

Google announced Friday it will no longer accept ads for “unproven or experimental medical techniques,” including most stem cell therapy, cellular therapy and gene therapy.

[stephen_schenck]

Is that “Facebook” in the first line a mistake, or are they also involved?

No longer will Facebook accept ads for ‘unproven or experimental medical techniques’ like most consumer-marketed stem cell therapy, gene therapy, and cellular therapy you see promoted on social media in 2019.

[Pensketch]

But the rest of the woo out there is good to go, right?

Asking for a notorious right-wing bloviator with a tendency to cry.

[DukeTrout]

I’m wondering about whether Advocare will also get the boot?

[hecep]

Theoretically, this should help in curbing the “supplements” industry.

Theoretically.

[Garymon]

I finally got around to finishing Orphan Black yesterday. Why doesn’t Google want sestra to get better?

[GulliverFoyle]

I’m unclear on one thing. Are they only rejecting ads for quack treatments? Because there’s quack “gene” therapies and then there’s FDA approved clinically tested gene therapies prescribed and administered by actual medical professionals. If they’re only rejecting quack ads, then do they plan to give their moderators a list of FDA approved gene therapies against which to check ads, or are they planning to half-ass it like Facebook?

[jonathanpeterso]

wait, so it’s ok with the Federal Trade Commission for folks to advertise those things?

[tekk]

This is America. As long as you put “this is not a medical procedure intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any illness” you’re allowed to claim it diagnoses, treats, and prevents whatever you want

[latsot]

“This” isn’t America. It’s a place we call “the world.” There are up to several countries here that aren’t actually America, amazingly.

[tekk]

Do Google et al allow those ads outside of America? I figured that they were only able to thrive here because you can sell any fake medical treatment you want so long as you say that it’s totally definitely not legally a medical treatment.

[philbin1]

Facebook is itself an unproven experimental technique, with the emphasis on MENTAL.

[Manqueman]

Amazing how “liberal” Facebook and Google do so many conservative-friendly things. One would wonder from their acts just how liberal they actually are.