State representatives in Pennsylvania are proposing new laws to regulate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare. The bipartisan bill will establish new rules on how AI is applied and reported by insurance companies, hospitals and clinicians.
The lawmakers behind the bill are Arvind Venkat, Joe Hogan, Tarik Khan, Bridget Kosierowski and Greg Scott. Their goal is to be transparent and requires these groups to inform patients and the public about how AI is being used in their practices.
To prevent overreliance on AI, the proposed law requires that human decision makers always make final calls after individual evaluations. The bill emphasizes that AI should not replace the expertise and judgment of experienced health professionals. As EMT Rep. Scott said, computer algorithms cannot fully understand the human elements needed to understand a person’s medical history and needs.
Additionally, the bill addresses the risk of AI bias and discrimination. Insurance companies must prove to hospitals and clinicians of the Pennsylvania Department of Health and the Pennsylvania Department of Health that they minimize stigma in using AI. They must also provide evidence of how they have reached this resolve. This provision is intended to prevent AI from perpetuating harmful biases already prohibited by state law.
This initiative in Pennsylvania follows similar trends in other states. Illinois recently passed wellness and surveillance of the Psychological Resources Act, a law prohibiting the use of AI for mental health and therapeutic decisions. However, AI for management and supplementary support for licensed behavioral health professionals is still permitted. The law was enacted to protect patients from unregulated AI, protect the work of qualified providers, and address concerns about the use of AI chatbots in mental health services.
