The proposed bill provides new regulations on how AI is used and reported by insurance companies, hospitals and clinicians.
State representatives in Pennsylvania are seeking to regulate artificial intelligence in healthcare through new laws that determine how they apply in health environments.
Arvind Venkat, Joe Hogan, Tarik Khan, Bridget Kosierowski and Greg Scott are behind the push for a bipartisan bill that provides new regulations on how AI is used and reported by insurance companies, hospitals and clinicians.
These groups need to provide patients and the public with transparency about how AI is used in businesses and practice environments.
“As the only doctor at the General Assembly, I have seen in real time the rapid growth of AI use in healthcare,” said Venkat of D-Allegheny. “I am grateful to my bipartisan colleagues, including fellow health professionals who are participating in this law, to ensure that Pennsylvanians are being held responsible and used effectively in the healthcare industry.”
What is the impact?
To prevent clinicians from overreliance on AI, the law ensures that human decision makers make the ultimate decision based on individual assessments when AI is used by insurance companies, hospitals, or clinicians.
Scott of D-Montgomery said that AI has the ability to enhance every aspect of human life, including health care, but should not replace the expertise and judgment of experienced clinicians.
“I embrace technology and use it every day, but as an EMT, I know firsthand that to understand a person’s medical history and needs, computer algorithms don’t fully evaluate,” Scott said. “We hope that this bipartisan effort will not sacrifice human life, but create a framework that supports innovation.”
The Act also requires certification from the PA Department of Health Clinicians of the Insurance Bureau of the Insurance Bureau of the PA Department of Health. This minimizes evidence of the bias and discrimination already prohibited by state law in AI use and how that decision was made.
“As AI use grows in the healthcare industry, we already see evidence that AI use can enhance bias and discrimination,” Venkat said. “This will ensure that insurance companies, clinicians and hospitals can use AI effectively and not use it to perpetuate potentially harmful biases in the healthcare sector.”
Kosierowski of D-Lackawanna said the bill would provide the necessary guardrails to protect patients and ensure that AI is responsible and effectively used in the state.
“As a nurse for nearly 30 years, I know that our healthcare system relies on experienced human decision makers to perform assessments on a personal basis,” she said. “With the introduction of AI, assessing the accuracy of AI requires more experienced physicians and nurses to ensure that bias and discrimination are not affecting their findings.
Bigger trends
Illinois recently passed a similar law, banning the use of AI to assist with mental health and medical decision-making, with the health and surveillance of the Psychological Resources Act, and allowing the use of AI in management and supplementary support services for licensed behavioral health professionals.
Illinois Gov. JB Pretzker said it is about protecting patients from unregulated AI products, protecting the jobs of qualified behavioral health providers, and protecting children from growing concerns about the use of AI chatbots in mental health services.
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