Social media, influencers and online booking for clinics and med spas in Ontario
Written by For Founders Law, a Toronto firm licensed by the Law Society of Ontario. About us
In short
Clinics, med spas and wellness brands follow the same influencer disclosure rules as everyone else, but the bigger risks are usually the claims themselves: performance claims need adequate testing, prescription drug advertising to the public is limited to name, price and quantity, and many regulated health professions restrict testimonials and before-and-after images. Online booking and reminder tools add privacy and anti-spam questions, especially where personal health information is involved.
Clinics, med spas, physiotherapy and wellness studios rely on Instagram, TikTok and creator partnerships as much as any consumer brand. The disclosure rules are the same. What’s different is the layer of health-specific rules on top, and the fact that booking and reminder tools often touch health information.
This post is general information, not legal advice.
Disclosure works the same way
If a creator receives payment, free treatments, discounts or commissions from your clinic, that’s a material connection and the post needs a clear disclosure. Ad Standards’ October 2025 guidelines treat #ad as a clear choice, ask for disclosure at the start of a caption and early in videos, and say each post or story needs its own disclosure. A disclosure in a bio or buried in hashtags isn’t enough.
The guidelines also say AI-generated or significantly altered images showing a product’s benefits should be disclosed, and that filters and AI mustn’t make results misleading. A smoothing filter on an “after” photo is a problem even with #MadeWithAI attached.
Claims need evidence
Under section 74.01(1)(b) of the Competition Act, a claim about a product’s or service’s performance or efficacy must be based on an adequate and proper test, and the person making the claim has to show it. “Visible results after one session,” “zero downtime” or “boosts immunity” each need support before they go into a caption, whether you post it or a creator does.
Prescription drugs, including neurotoxins
Section C.01.044 of the Food and Drug Regulations limits advertising of prescription drugs to the general public to the drug’s name, price and quantity. Health Canada has said this means no direct or indirect reference to therapeutic use or benefits, and it has flagged before-and-after photos and benefit testimonials as common issues. A creator’s post about a clinic’s injectable treatment can fall within that rule. Natural health products have their own regime: claims generally need to match the product’s licence.
Your regulatory college’s rules
Regulated health professionals are also bound by their college’s advertising standards, and these differ by profession. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario’s Advertising policy, for example, says physicians must not include testimonials in advertising, limits before-and-after images (they must portray a typical outcome of an actual patient, carry a disclaimer that results vary, and not be shown where the public is likely to see them unsolicited) and requires physicians to make sure advertising prepared on their behalf by a third party complies. Nurses, naturopaths, chiropractors, massage therapists and others each have their own standards. Check yours before you repost a client’s review.
Online booking and reminders
Booking platforms and health information. If your clinic is a health information custodian under PHIPA, the information in your booking system, such as the reason for a visit or the type of treatment, may be personal health information. PHIPA has specific rules for agents and for providers that supply electronic services to custodians. Read your booking vendor’s terms for where data is stored, who can access it and whether it’s used for anything else. See privacy for clinics and wellness brands.
Reminders versus marketing. Under CASL, a message that solely facilitates, completes or confirms a transaction the client already agreed to, such as a confirmation or reminder for a booking they made, doesn’t need consent (section 6(6)(b)). The sender identification and unsubscribe requirements can still apply, so keep them in your templates. Adding “book your next treatment and save 20%” turns it into a commercial electronic message that needs consent and an unsubscribe mechanism.
Reviews. Asking clients for reviews is common, but incentivizing reviews without disclosure, or filtering out negative ones, can be misleading. And if your college restricts testimonials, reposting reviews as advertising may be off limits.
A checklist for clinic marketing
- Put disclosure requirements and approved claims in every creator agreement.
- Keep the evidence behind every performance claim.
- Keep prescription drug promotion to name, price and quantity.
- Check your college’s rules on testimonials and before-and-after images.
- Keep appointment reminders free of promotions, or get consent, and include sender identification and an unsubscribe link.
- Review your booking vendor’s privacy terms and data location.
We prepare clinic privacy and consent documents and brand deal contracts, and run CASL reviews, at fixed fees listed on our fees page. If you’re planning a campaign for your clinic, book a free 15-minute consult.