Georgia Advertising Rules for Medical and Wellness Practices
A sourced summary of Georgia's advertising standards for med spas, dental, chiropractic, medical, and longevity practices. Every rule below was verified against the statute or board regulation cited next to it. This is an educational summary, not legal advice.
Verified against Georgia Composite Medical Board sources, 2026-07-02
Educational summary for practice owners. Not legal advice.
False, misleading, and extravagant claims by physicians
O.C.G.A. 43-34-8 authorizes the Composite Medical Board to refuse or discipline a license where the licensee has knowingly made misleading, deceptive, untrue, or fraudulent representations in the practice of the profession. The statute's advertising ground reaches representations that a manifestly incurable disease can be permanently cured and any untruthful or improbable statements, or flamboyant or extravagant claims concerning professional excellence or treatment protocols. A separate catch-all covers unprofessional, unethical, deceptive, or deleterious conduct harmful to the public, which need not have resulted in actual injury.
O.C.G.A. 43-34-8(a)(2), (6), (7) checked 2026-07-02
Name and license type required in every practitioner ad
Under O.C.G.A. 43-1-33, as rewritten by the 2023 Health Care Practitioners Truth and Transparency Act, an advertisement by a health care practitioner shall include the practitioner's name and disclose only the type of license under which the practitioner is authorized to provide services. Advertisement is defined broadly to include business cards, letterhead, patient brochures, email, internet, audio, and video. Ads by a practice or facility are exempt from listing every employed practitioner.
O.C.G.A. 43-1-33 (SB 197, 2023) checked 2026-07-02
Medical specialty titles reserved to physicians
The same statute prohibits ads that include deceptive or misleading terms or false representations, defined to include titles or words that misstate or falsely imply the practitioner's profession, skills, training, expertise, degree, board certification, licensure, services, or medical field. Ads may not include or reference medical or medical specialty titles unless the practitioner is a physician licensed under Article 2 of Chapter 34. Intentional violations may draw disciplinary action from the practitioner's licensing board, which may also seek an injunction.
O.C.G.A. 43-1-33(c)-(d), (f) (SB 197) checked 2026-07-02
Doctor title disclosures and in-office identification
An APRN or PA must verbally identify their license type during each patient interaction in a clinical setting, and one who holds a doctorate and uses the title doctor in a clinical setting shall clearly state that he or she is not a medical doctor or physician. Practitioners in multi-discipline settings must wear an identifier showing name and license or degree, and a practitioner who practices in more than one office must place the identifier information conspicuously on their website if they maintain one.
O.C.G.A. 43-1-33(d.1)-(e) (SB 197) checked 2026-07-02
Dental advertising: prohibited claims and fee ads
Board of Dentistry Rule 150-10-.01 bars fraudulent, misleading, or deceptive advertising and specifically flags claims of treatment superiority, unsubstantiated quality claims such as quality dentistry, no pain guarantees, and references to latest modern equipment or scientifically equipped facilities. Specialty claims require a specialty recognized by the Board plus ADA-guideline education. Advertised fee ranges must fully disclose minimum and maximum amounts and be honored for at least 60 days after last publication, and the dentist bears ultimate responsibility for all advertisements with documentation retained for one year.
Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 150-10-.01 checked 2026-07-02
Chiropractic advertising and free or discounted offers
Board of Chiropractic Examiners Chapter 100-4 prohibits any false, misleading, or deceptive communication in any form of advertising, including unsubstantiated superiority claims, guaranteed results, and ads that create false expectations. Free or reduced-cost service offers require a signed written disclosure stating that any further treatment will be provided at rates regularly charged by the office, retained in the patient record for seven years, with same-day charged services separately disclosed. Licensees may hold out only as chiropractor, doctor of chiropractic, or D.C.; the title chiropractic physician is prohibited.
Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. Ch. 100-4 checked 2026-07-02
Med spa cosmetic laser services: licensure and supervision
Composite Medical Board Chapter 360-35 licenses assistant and senior cosmetic laser practitioners and requires assistants to work under the supervision of a Board-licensed physician or a senior laser practitioner. Except for hair removal, patients must be examined by the consulting physician or a cosmetic laser-licensed PA or APRN before services, and non-physician facilities must post signage displaying the consulting physician's name, board certification, emergency contact, practice address, and on-site status. The consulting physician must be Georgia licensed with a principal place of business in Georgia or within 50 miles of the facility. The chapter contains no separate advertising provisions, so the general standards above govern med spa marketing claims.
Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. Ch. 360-35 (Lasers) checked 2026-07-02
What this means by practice type
Med spas
Georgia regulates the med spa service model through the cosmetic laser rules rather than a med spa advertising rule. Marketing that names injectors or laser practitioners should match their actual license type under O.C.G.A. 43-1-33, and non-physician facilities should already display the required consulting-physician signage that patients will compare against the website. Superlatives like best results or painless are the kind of extravagant treatment-protocol claims O.C.G.A. 43-34-8 lists as discipline grounds for the supervising physician.(Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. Ch. 360-35)
Dental
Georgia's dental advertising rule is unusually specific: no superiority claims, no quality dentistry language, no no-pain promises, no equipment boasts, and specialty labels only where Board-recognized. If a page advertises fees for routine services, disclose the full range and be prepared to honor it for 60 days, and keep a copy of every ad for one year since the dentist is personally responsible for all of it.(Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 150-10-.01)
Chiropractic
Free exam and new-patient special offers are directly regulated: the patient must sign a disclosure stating further treatment will be billed at regular rates, and the practice keeps it for seven years. Ad copy and directory listings should use only chiropractor, doctor of chiropractic, or D.C., since chiropractic physician is expressly prohibited.(Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. Ch. 100-4)
Longevity and GLP-1
Georgia has no published GLP-1 or longevity-specific advertising rule; these programs sit under the general physician standards. Claims that a program cures or permanently reverses a condition, or improbable outcome statements about weight loss or lifespan, map directly onto the guaranteed-cure and extravagant-claims grounds in O.C.G.A. 43-34-8, and virtual-first programs must also meet the telemedicine rule's in-person standard of care.(O.C.G.A. 43-34-8(a)(6))
Telehealth posture
Composite Medical Board Rule 360-3-.07, Practice Through Electronic or Other Such Means, holds licensees practicing by electronic means to the same standard of care as in-person care. Treatment requires a Georgia-licensed physician, PA, or APRN, availability of a patient history, full documentation, and giving the patient the treating licensee's name, credentials, and emergency contact information, plus diligent efforts toward an annual in-person exam. The rule does not authorize prescribing controlled substances for pain or chronic pain by electronic means.
Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. 360-3-.07 checked 2026-07-02
Markets in Georgia
Common questions
Can a Georgia med spa advertise discounts or specials?
The Composite Medical Board's published rules do not directly address discount or fee advertising for medical services, so general standards control: the offer must not be misleading and outcome claims must stay away from the extravagant-claims ground in O.C.G.A. 43-34-8. Note the contrast with regulated verticals, since Georgia chiropractors advertising free or discounted services must obtain a signed patient disclosure, and dentists advertising fees must disclose the full range and honor it for 60 days.
Are patient testimonials allowed in Georgia practice advertising?
None of the sources reviewed here, including O.C.G.A. 43-1-33, the dental rule 150-10-.01, and chiropractic Chapter 100-4, contains a provision that directly addresses testimonials. That does not make them safe by default: a testimonial that creates false expectations, implies guaranteed results, or amounts to an improbable or extravagant claim about professional excellence would fall under the general false and misleading advertising standards each board enforces.
Can a nurse practitioner running a Georgia med spa advertise as a doctor?
Under O.C.G.A. 43-1-33, ads must state the practitioner's name and only the license type actually held, and non-physicians may not use medical or medical specialty titles in advertising. An APRN or PA with a doctorate who uses the title doctor in a clinical setting is required to clearly state that he or she is not a medical doctor or physician, and intentional violations are grounds for board discipline.
Marketing that survives your board
The free growth audit includes a compliance read of your current site and ads against your state's advertising rules.