Removing a negative Google review for a pharmacy

HHS names pharmacies among the providers covered by HIPAA when they submit claims electronically, and its own example is a pharmacy that sends claims to a health plan through a pharmacy benefit manager. Nearly every retail and independent pharmacy fits. HHS treats a name linked to care at a named provider as protected health information, so a reply that mentions the drug, the prescriber, the copay or the date of a fill discloses it.

A pharmacist’s instinct is to explain the reason, such as a prior authorization or a refill too soon. Do it in the store or on the phone, never in the review. Online, say the pharmacy cannot discuss any prescription in public and give the pharmacist in charge’s line.

• Long lines, a closed drive through or a curt exchange at the counter.
• An insurer that rejected the claim or required prior authorization.
• A prescriber who sent the wrong dose or never sent the script.
• A national shortage blamed on the store.
• Someone posing as an inspector, a board member or a health department official.
• A claim the pharmacy sells counterfeit or expired drugs.
• A technician named in full with remarks about her life outside work.

Lines and tone are real experiences that stay. A review aimed wholly at an insurer’s rejection or a prescriber’s error describes a decision made by another business and can meet off topic, though many of these also describe a real wait at the counter, which makes the case Mixed. A writer who claims to speak as an inspector or official meets impersonation, which Google applies to content pretending to be a verified authoritative source.

A claim of counterfeit or expired stock is a checkable health claim, and Google’s misinformation policy covers deceptive or misleading health or medical information. A technician’s full name joined to personal details meets personal information. Google does allow the names of professionals who do business under their own names, so a pharmacist owner named in a fair complaint is a different matter.

• The state board’s public license lookup showing the pharmacy in good standing.
• Your most recent inspection report, if it contradicts the review.
• Wholesaler invoices or lot records for the drug class the review names, kept about stock, not patients.
• For an outside decision: a general statement of whether the rejection came from a plan or a prescriber, with no patient named.
• For a named technician: the screenshot and the employee’s confirmation that she did not consent.

Note. Do not attach a patient profile, a fill history or a claim rejection screen to any case. The record should describe the pharmacy, never the person.

When the pharmacy counter sits inside a grocery or a big box store, reviews about the checkout lanes, the deli or the parking lot end up on the pharmacy’s listing. If the pharmacy keeps its own listing apart from the store’s, a review about the store side describes a part of the business the pharmacy does not run, and can meet off topic.

If the store and the pharmacy share one listing, those reviews describe the business as a whole and stay. Check which listing you are looking at before you report, so the case argues the right point.

1. 01

   Save the review

   Screenshot the text, the reviewer’s profile and the date it went up.

2. 02

   Report it in Google

   Open Read reviews on your Business Profile, select the Report icon, choose the reason and select Send report.

3. 03

   Run the free audit

   The audit reads every low review on the store’s listing and gives each a clause and a fee class, or No rule broken.

4. 04

   Decide store by store

   Accept the case sheets you want filed. A fee is billed only after Google removes the review.