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Mental health marketing rules in Washington
What you can claim, how you can pay for referrals, and where Washington diverges from the federal floor. Derived from the live ruleset library.
Yes. Washington has its own mental health advertising law, and Pre-Trip carries it as a live rule set, with every rule traced back to the section of law it comes from, checked 2026-07-31. On top of the federal rules that apply everywhere (the FTC Act, HIPAA, the TCPA, CAN-SPAM), Washington adds 2 rules of its own, listed below with the section behind each one. A clean pass here means the copy cleared both.
RCW 18.130.180(3) (all advertising which is false, fraudulent, or misleading is unprofessional conduct), part of the Uniform Disciplinary Act, which governs mental health counselors, marriage and fami
Every Washington scan also runs the always-on federal layer: FTC deceptive health claims and endorsements, TCPA consent and revocation in calls and texts. A ruleset counts toward a clean pass only while it is published, matches its content hash, and its review clock is fresh, which is why the date above is load-bearing.
The claim types Washington law puts off-limits in treatment marketing. Each is compiled from the cited section; the scanner reads your copy for them, and the patterns stay on the server.
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High riskPromises of cure, guaranteed recovery, or any claim of a guaranteed treatment outcome.
A promise of cure or a guaranteed treatment outcome is advertising which is false or misleading, and is therefore unprofessional conduct under RCW 18.130.180(3). The subdivision reaches ALL advertising, without qualification.
RCW 18.130.180(3)
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FlagClaims of being the best, top, leading or number one provider without substantiation.
An unsubstantiated claim of superiority over other providers is misleading advertising and is unprofessional conduct under RCW 18.130.180(3).
RCW 18.130.180(3)
What the scanner does with two versions of the same idea. The flagged line is rendered the way Pre-Trip renders a finding; the clean line is a pass.
We guarantee you will be free of anxiety after eight sessions.
A guaranteed treatment outcome. No course of psychotherapy can promise a result for a given client, and the claim is unsubstantiated on its face.
Cure and guarantee claims · RCW 18.130.180 (unprofessional conduct, Uniform Disciplinary Act)
Cognitive behavioral therapy is an evidence-based treatment for anxiety, and most clients meet weekly for several months.
Describes the treatment and what the evidence supports without promising this reader a result.
Washington and federal sources
- RCW 18.130.180 (unprofessional conduct, Uniform Disciplinary Act) primary
- RCW 18.225.090 (counselors and therapists, grounds for discipline)
- 15 U.S.C. 45 (FTC Act Section 5, official code viewer) primary
- 15 U.S.C. 52 (FTC Act Section 12, false advertisements, official code viewer) primary
- FTC Health Products Compliance Guidance (Dec. 2022) primary
- 16 CFR Part 255 Endorsement Guides, 2023 revision (Cornell LII mirror; ecfr.gov bot-blocked at authoring)
- 16 CFR 255.2 Consumer endorsements (Cornell LII mirror)
- 16 CFR 255.5 Disclosure of material connections (Cornell LII mirror)
- 16 CFR 251.1 Guide concerning use of the word Free (Cornell LII mirror)
Pre-Trip is a rigorous screen, not legal advice. Counsel decides; we help you arrive prepared. Coverage for Washington reflects the library as of the build and changes as the law does.