False advertising in health care; term; deceptive act; enforcement; penalties; effective date.
HB3910 creates a new Oklahoma law aimed at false or misleading advertising for health care services. It defines “health care services” broadly to include medical, dental, behavioral health, mental health, substance use disorder treatment, surgical, psychiatric, therapeutic, diagnostic, preventative, rehabilitative, supportive services, and medication. The bill makes it an unfair and deceptive act in commerce, and therefore a violation of the Consumer Protection Act, to disseminate public advertising about health care services or proposed services in Oklahoma that is untrue or clearly designed to mislead the public about the nature of the services provided.
The bill applies to a wide range of advertising channels, including direct consumer communications, print media, broadcast media, telephone marketing, websites, social media, and online advertisements. It also treats advertising about health care services as an act in commerce, which brings it within the state’s consumer protection framework. The measure is scheduled to take effect November 1, 2026.
HB3910 would add new sections to Title 63 of the Oklahoma Statutes and tie misleading health care advertising directly to the Consumer Protection Act in Title 15. It authorizes enforcement by the Attorney General or a district attorney, including civil investigative demands, injunctive relief, and civil penalties of up to $3,000 for a first violation and up to $10,000 for repeat violations, plus attorney fees and costs. Before filing suit, enforcement officials must give written notice and allow a 10-business-day opportunity to cure the violation.
Based on the bill text and available legislative context, the measure appears to be framed as a consumer-protection and public-trust bill rather than a controversial regulatory overhaul. There are no recorded committee transcripts or votes in the provided materials, so no direct debate is available. The caption and structure suggest the bill is intended to curb deceptive health care marketing and protect consumers from misleading claims.
The main point of potential contention is the breadth of the prohibition, especially the standard covering advertising that is “untrue or clearly designed to mislead” and the wide definition of health care services. Health care providers, marketers, and organizations using online or direct-to-consumer advertising could be affected, and questions may arise about how aggressively the Attorney General or district attorneys would enforce the law. Another possible issue is whether the bill could chill legitimate promotional speech if the line between persuasive advertising and misleading advertising is applied broadly.