Ezel / Tax Rulings / CA

Were baby powder and lubricating jelly exempt medicines even if the body did not absorb them?

Short answer Yes. California treated both products as medicines when sold through a qualifying treatment channel, regardless of whether the body absorbed them.
State
CA
Ruling
Annotation 425.0180
Tax type
Sales and Use Tax
Issued
1965-06-10
Issued by
California State Board of Equalization
Requested by
A requester asking whether baby powder and lubricating jelly were medicines
Topics
medical facility
Source
View Original PDF

Apply this to your situation

This page answers the general question as of 1965. Ask about yours and see what current California tax law says, with citations.

Currency note: this ruling is from 1965
Subsequent statutory amendments, regulation changes, court decisions, or later rulings may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current tax advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, rate, or position mentioned here.
Disclaimer: This short 1965 letter addressed the products as then commonly recognized and still required a qualifying sale under Ruling 22(a). Current formulation, use, furnishing channel, and law control.
About this page: The plain-English summary, reader guidance, and Q&A below were written by Ezel based on the official state tax ruling. The original ruling (linked on this page as a PDF) is the authoritative source for any reliance.
View original ruling (PDF)

Plain-English summary

California treated baby powder and lubricating jelly as medicines whether or not the body absorbed them. The letter found both commonly recognized as preparations intended for diagnosing, curing, mitigating, treating, or preventing disease.

The exemption still depended on the sale occurring under one of the treatment circumstances listed in historical Ruling 22(a).

Common questions

Did the products need to be absorbed?

No.

Were all retail sales automatically exempt?

No. The letter required a qualifying Ruling 22(a) circumstance.

Citations and references

  • Historical California Board of Equalization Ruling 22(a) — qualifying medicine-sale channels referenced in the letter

Source

Original ruling text

425.0180

STATE OF CALIFORNIA

STATE BOARD OF EQUALIZATION

June 10, 1965

--- --- ----- --- ----- --- --Gentlemen:
You are completely correct that baby powder and lubricating jelly are classed as medicines whether or not they are absorbed. Both items are commonly recognized as preparations intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease and are exempt when sold under any of the circumstances enumerated in part (a) of Ruling 22. If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to write to us again. Very truly yours,

Philip R. Dougherty
Tax Counsel

PRD:lar

[1b]

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