Google to Show Addiction Treatment Ads In the US Again

• After almost a year since the ban on Google’s addiction treatment ads, the search engine platform will reintroduce them in the near future.
• Google had banned the ads last year following reports of unverified treatment centers that were dubious.
• Google has now verified almost 100 facilities in the US which have been approved for advertising.

With a lot of controversy surrounding Google’s rehabilitation ads last year, the search engine is now taking extra precautions before running them again in the near future. The ads were taken down last year, and we received no word if they would be coming back until now. The tech giant has indicated that it will be running advertisements for addiction treatment centers in the near future after thoroughly verifying certifications and licenses of rehab centers.

When the ads were previously listed last year, many users spotted a number of addiction treatment centers that were dubious in nature without proper licensing. With almost a hundred medical facilities verified already, the search engine platform’s ad should hold merit to them once the ads return. Google initially planned to re-released the ads with only 30 verified facilities but recently expanded to almost a hundred treatment centers. There is a 15-point checklist that has been introduced by the company, and advertising organizations need to pass all 15 parameters to be eligible for advertising.

Google is partnering with Portland-based business certification service LegitScript for the verification process. LegitScript will be responsible for ensuring that advertising organizations fulfill all of the legal and regulatory requirements. Some of the first partners that will be appearing on the list of advertisers mostly include organizations that are controlled by the Recovery Centers of America.

RCA Director Grant McClernon revealed “What they were trying to get rid of were these 'lead aggregators' that were posing as treatment centers, but were basically selling the patients. They wanted people who were operating under state scrutiny, providing real treatment." The company understands and supports Google’s initiative and will be working closely to offer help to those who want to get better.

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