Ordem dos Médicos Presses for a Health-Advertising Law Rewrite to Curb 'Integrative Medicine' Clinics — 54 Centres Market Unrecognised Specialties After a Lone €4,000 ERS Fine and Over €1 Million in EU Funds

The Ordem dos Médicos (the Portuguese Medical Association) is pressing the government to rewrite the country's health-advertising rules after an investigation revealed that dozens of clinics are marketing medical "specialties" that do not officially exist — and that some have drawn on European funding to do so.

An investigation by the newspaper Público identified 54 health centres and clinics across Portugal promoting themselves with labels such as "medicina integrativa" (integrative medicine), "medicina funcional" (functional medicine), "medicina natural" (natural medicine) and "medicina ortomolecular" (orthomolecular medicine). None of these is a specialty recognised by the Ordem dos Médicos or by the country's nutritionists' professional body, yet the terms appear in registered business names and across clinics' websites and social-media channels.

The commercial stakes are considerable. Consultations at some of these centres can cost up to €300, and the investigation found that establishments in the sector have together received more than €1 million in European funds — public money flowing to practices that lack scientific validation.

Enforcement, by contrast, has been minimal. The Entidade Reguladora da Saúde (ERS, the Health Regulatory Authority) has issued just one significant ruling, condemning a Porto clinic, "Dr. Joel Portugal – Medicina Funcional e Integrativa," in a 2024 deliberation. The clinic was fined €4,000 for seven infractions, including prohibited health-advertising practices, and ordered to drop the disputed terminology from its premises and online presence. Against 54 centres operating nationwide, a single €4,000 fine has done little to change behaviour.

For the Medical Association, the gap between the rules and reality is the core problem. Its president (bastonário), Carlos Cortes, is calling for changes to the Regime Jurídico das Práticas de Publicidade em Saúde (the Legal Framework for Health Advertising Practices) to "make clearer the prohibition of using expressions, designations or claims that could mislead citizens about the existence of medical specialties."

"People have the right to know, clearly and rigorously, what scientific evidence supports the care proposed to them and what results are presented," Cortes said, framing the issue as one of patient protection rather than professional turf.

The dispute touches a wider European anxiety about health misinformation. Portugal, unlike around half of EU member states, lacks a public database of food supplements, and consumer-health advocates have warned that vague or pseudoscientific branding can steer patients away from evidence-based treatment. The Ordem dos Médicos argues that clear statutory language — spelling out which terms are off-limits and giving the ERS sharper tools to act — is the fastest way to close the loophole.

The government has not yet committed to reopening the legislation. But with an investigation now naming names and quantifying the public money involved, pressure is building for a regulatory response that goes beyond a lone fine.