The Polish government approved the “Lex Charlatan” amendment on May 12, 2026, introducing severe penalties to eliminate pseudo-medical therapies and protect patients from dangerous health disinformation.
A Decisive Blow to Medical Deception
The Polish government has adopted the “Lex Charlatan” project, a legislative amendment designed to permanently remove harmful therapies and health disinformation from the market. This revision of the Act on Patient Rights and the Patient Rights Ombudsman aims to protect citizens from pseudo-medical practices that the Ministry of Health identifies as threats to health and life.
Protecting Patients from Harmful Misinformation
Health Minister Jolanta Sobierańska-Grenda emphasized that the new law will stop the intentional misleading of patients and the exploitation of difficult life situations for profit. The regulations are designed to block the promotion of substances with false medicinal claims and prevent services from being advertised as health benefits when they are ineffective or dangerous.
Million-Zloty Fines for Pseudo-Medical Practitioners
The “Lex Charlatan” framework introduces financial penalties of up to 1 million PLN for entities employing prohibited practices. Additionally, the Patient Rights Ombudsman will gain the power to issue public warnings and order an immediate halt to activities that violate the new regulations, with the requirement of instant compliance.
Clarifying the New Regulatory Framework
Following the adoption of the bill on Tuesday, May 12, 2026, the Ministry of Health has scheduled a conference for the following day to disclose the full details of the legislation. The Patient Rights Ombudsman will participate in this briefing to outline how the government intends to end the era of unlicensed “doctors” and fraudulent “miracle” therapies.
