Updates as of October 9, 2026
Introduction
At UPMC, we are committed to maintaining the integrity and trust of our patients. To further our mission of providing reliable and trustworthy information, we accept advertising and sponsorship on our websites under certain guidelines. This policy outlines the criteria and guidelines for advertising and sponsorship on our platforms.
Guidelines
- General Principles
- The advertiser is responsible for the accuracy and objectivity of the advertisement.
- Advertising and sponsorship revenue supports our core mission and helps us improve our services.
- All advertisements are labeled as such, and the advertising companies are identified.
- The presence of an advertisement or sponsorship does not imply endorsement, recommendation, approval, or warranty of the advertiser, clearing house or other third-party company or product by UPMC.
- Advertisers do not control or influence UPMC’s editorial content.
- The advertisements do not constitute medical advice and do not influence the clinical decisions of UPMC physicians and other healthcare providers.
- Neither advertising companies nor clearing house companies received any protected health information from UPMC.
- Prohibited Categories
- We prohibit advertising or sponsorships promoting:
- Alcohol
- Tobacco products
- Firearms and weapons
- Fireworks
- Healthcare services (clinics, hospitals, procedures, lab testing)
- Legal services (including malpractice)
- Pornography
- Gambling and lottery
- Political campaigns
- Social causes
- Religion
- Competitors
- Comparative advertising (no mention of competitive brand names in any advertisements)
- Accepted Formats
- Advertising or sponsorships may not include:
- Pop-ups or surveys
- Forms to collect personally identifiable information
- Advertiser or Sponsor Criteria
- Advertisers and sponsors must meet the following criteria:
- Ads may not make health claims that are not clearly substantiated. Advertisers may be required to submit supporting documentation to substantiate their products’ claims.
- UPMC must not appear to endorse any product or advertiser.
- UPMC retains final approval of all sponsor and product messages, banners, and advertising copy that are directly linked or adjacent to the content.
- The ad itself, any advertising icons, and company logos must be displayed in such a way that they clearly are not part of the site content.
- Collecting and selling mailing lists without the users’ express permission is not allowed.
- UPMC shall not release any personally identifiable information from site visitors or place any cookies, applets, or other such files — if those files transmit any personally identifiable information to the advertisers or agencies — on computers of site visitors who do not visit advertisers' sites by clicking on their ad banners.
- Ads served through networks or exchanges are reviewed on a regular basis and UPMC will remove any that do not meet our advertising criteria. However, we are unable to preview all ads before they appear on our site because of how they are served to us. This means it is possible that ads may appear that do not meet our advertising guidelines. If you encounter ads that run contrary to our mission or appear to violate these guidelines, please contact us.
- Editorial Independence
- UPMC maintains total editorial independence from advertisers and sponsors. Advertisers and sponsors have no influence over or input in our editorial development.
- Any opinions, advice, statements, services, advertisements, offers or other information or content expressed or made available through the Sites by third party advertisers or sponsors are those of the respective authors or distributors and not UPMC.
Changes to Policy
- These guidelines are intended to provide general guidance. They are not inclusive or exhaustive and are subject to change at the discretion of UPMC at any time.
