Montana at a glance
| Rule | Montana | Checked |
|---|---|---|
| PSYPACT (psychologists) | Yes | 8 October 2026 |
| Counseling Compact (counselors) | Yes, not live yet | 8 October 2026 |
| Social Work Licensure Compact | No | 8 October 2026 |
| Health-data or health geofencing law | None | 30 September 2026 |
| Privacy law treating health data as sensitive | Montana Consumer Data Privacy Act | 30 September 2026 |
Montana licensing boards’ advertising rules
Ads, websites and directory profiles all count as advertising to a licensing board. These are the Montana rules we check copy against, with links to the official text. Boards update their rules, so read the current version before you rely on a summary.
Every Montana health care practitioner
- For licensees of Montana's professional licensing boards, including health care boards, a misleading, deceptive, false or fraudulent advertisement or other representation in their practice is unprofessional conduct. (MCA 37-1-316(1)(g))
Montana Board of Psychologists (psychologists)
- Only a person licensed under Montana's psychologist chapter may present themselves to the public as a psychologist. (MCA 37-17-301)
- The board adopts the APA Ethics Code, whose Standard 5.05 says psychologists don't solicit testimonials from current therapy clients or from others vulnerable to undue influence. (ARM 24.189.1608 (APA Ethics Code, Standard 5.05))
Montana Board of Behavioral Health (clinical social workers, clinical professional counselors, marriage and family therapists, addiction counselors)
- Dividing a fee, or giving or accepting anything of value, for making or receiving a referral is unprofessional conduct. (ARM 24.219.2301(2)(d))
Montana Board of Medical Examiners (physicians)
- Holding yourself out as able to diagnose or treat physical or mental conditions, including by telemedicine, counts as practicing medicine, which needs a Montana license or an exemption. (MCA 37-3-102(11))
Telehealth across Montana's borders
Montana is a PSYPACT state. A psychologist whose home license is in Montana can apply for PSYPACT's telepsychology authorization and then see clients by telehealth in the other PSYPACT states, so ads can reach clients there too.
Montana has enacted the Counseling Compact, but it wasn't live here yet when we checked. Once it is, a licensed professional counselor based here can apply for privileges to practice in other member states instead of a separate license in each.
For physicians, psychiatrists included, Montana is in the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact, which speeds up getting a license in other member states but doesn't replace it.
Telehealth ads should only reach places where the clinician can legally treat: see PSYPACT and Counseling Compact states.
Practices near a state line often see clients from next door. North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming and Idaho each have their own page.
Health data, tracking and Montana law
The Montana Consumer Data Privacy Act, in effect since October 2024, treats health information as sensitive data. A business needs the person's opt-in consent before processing it. Most small practices fall below its size thresholds, but the ad platforms and data companies that receive website data usually don't, which is one more reason health information shouldn't reach them.
This is not legal advice.
How the states compare: state health-data laws.
What patients search for in Montana
Searches a month that name a Montana city, with the average cost per click, from Ahrefs (checked between 30 September and 5 October 2026). A dash means too few to measure; “near me” searches aren't counted. The Statewide row is searches that name the state.
| City | Therapist | Psychiatrist | Ketamine | Weight loss | GI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Billings | 150 $3.50 | 80 $3.00 | 30 $2.50 | 200 | 70 $2.50 |
| Missoula | 90 $1.80 | 80 $2.50 | 50 | – | 150 $1.00 |
| Bozeman | 100 $3.50 | 70 $3.00 | 50 $2.00 | 40 | 20 $1.90 |
| Statewide | 60 | 40 $2.00 | 100 $2.50 | – | – |
Of the cities measured, Billings gets the most of these searches. Its biggest single search, “medical weight loss billings mt”, gets about 200 a month. To turn a cost per click into a cost per booked patient, put your own numbers into the patient acquisition cost calculator.
Across the searches measured here, Montana patients look most for therapists (about 400 a month), then psychiatrists (270). Billings alone accounts for 38% of them. A click on a therapist search here costs about $3.05 on average, below the $4.00 median across the 306 therapist searches measured on our state pages.
Fill The Lobby is a remote US healthcare marketing agency; the ads and pages we write for practices are checked against rules like these. See how we handle compliance.
Sources
- PSYPACT, compact map, checked 8 October 2026
- Counseling Compact, member map, checked 8 October 2026
- Counseling Compact, 10 states now offering privileges, checked 8 October 2026
- Counseling Compact, Pennsylvania becomes the 40th member, checked 8 October 2026
- Social Work Licensure Compact, enacted in 35 states, checked 8 October 2026
- Interstate Medical Licensure Compact, participating states, checked 14 October 2026
- IAPP, US State Privacy Legislation Tracker, checked 30 September 2026
- Ahrefs Keywords Explorer, US search volumes and cost per click, checked 30 September 2026
- Montana Consumer Data Privacy Act, checked 30 September 2026
- Every Montana health care practitioner, checked 5 October 2026
- Montana Board of Psychologists (psychologists), checked 14 October 2026
- Montana Board of Behavioral Health (clinical social workers, clinical professional counselors, marriage and family therapists, addiction counselors), checked 14 October 2026
- Montana Board of Medical Examiners (physicians), checked 14 October 2026