TCPA

The TCPA, or Telephone Consumer Protection Act, is the United States federal law that limits automated and prerecorded calls and texts to consumers, and sets out when a business needs a person's consent before contacting them that way.

General information for clinics in the United States. This is not legal advice; ask your own counsel how the rules apply to your clinic.

Congress passed the TCPA in 1991, and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) writes and updates the rules under it. For a vet clinic, it matters whenever the clinic sends reminders, recalls or promotions by text, or places automated or AI-voiced calls to clients.

Consent and purpose

The central idea is consent matched to the purpose of the contact. Informational messages, such as a reminder about a booked appointment, need the client's prior express consent. Marketing messages, such as a promotion for a dental month, need a stronger form: prior express written consent. A clinic should be able to show when and how each client agreed, for which channel and for which kind of message.

The FCC has also said that AI-generated voices count as "artificial" voices under the TCPA, so automated reminder calls using an AI voice follow the same consent rules as prerecorded ones.

Opt-outs, hours and the Do Not Call list

Clients can withdraw consent, and a clinic must honor an opt-out such as replying STOP promptly and stop sending that kind of message. Telemarketing calls are limited to the hours between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in the recipient's local time, and marketing contact must respect the National Do Not Call Registry. Many states add rules of their own on top, including stricter hours and frequency limits.

An example

A clinic wants to start texting vaccine recalls. Before the first send, it checks which clients agreed to texts from the clinic and for what, adds a consent line to its new-client form, and makes sure every message ends with how to opt out. Promotional texts wait until the clinic has written consent for marketing.

How Tilly handles it

Tilly only contacts clients who've agreed to that channel and that kind of message, and keeps the evidence of each consent. Clients can opt out by replying STOP (or the equivalent in their language) and it takes effect immediately. Messages go out only within allowed hours in the client's time zone, and numbers are checked against the Do Not Call registry before marketing contact.

For practical detail, read TCPA rules for vet clinic texting and the complete guide to no-shows, reminders and recalls.