Explainers
plain answers, with the sourcesPlain answers to questions physicians and practice leaders ask about AI in medicine. Every fact links to its source, each page shows the date it was last reviewed, and each ends with what would change the answer.
- Reviewed Sept 30, 2026Can my insurer use AI to deny a claim?
Yes, as an aid, within limits that depend on the type of coverage: Medicare Advantage plans may use algorithms to assist coverage decisions, but a medical-necessity denial must rest on the patient's own circumstances and be...
- Reviewed Oct 1, 2026Do doctors have to tell patients when AI is used?
No federal law requires physicians to tell patients in general that AI was used in their care, as of Sept. 30, 2026 (ASTP/ONC; 45 CFR 92.210).
- Reviewed Oct 1, 2026Are AI health coaches and wearables regulated?
Wearables and AI coaching apps that make only general wellness claims, such as tracking sleep or exercise, are generally outside FDA device rules, while features that diagnose or detect disease, such as a smartwatch ECG that...
- Reviewed Oct 1, 2026Is ChatGPT HIPAA compliant?
No software is HIPAA compliant on its own. HIPAA governs how doctors, hospitals, health plans and the companies working for them handle patient information, and a clinician at a HIPAA-covered practice or hospital generally may...
- Reviewed Sept 28, 2026Who is liable when an AI scribe makes an error?
The clinician who signs the note, according to every medical board, malpractice insurer and scribe vendor statement found. No published court decision on an AI-written note was found as of Sept. 28, 2026.
- Reviewed Sept 28, 2026How does Medicare pay for AI?
Software without its own billing code is paid within the service it supports, such as the scan or the hospital stay. A handful of AI services have their own codes and payment rates; in hospital outpatient departments, Medicare...
- Reviewed Oct 13, 2026What does the Rural Health Transformation Program pay for?
The program gives the 50 states $10 billion a year for fiscal years 2026 to 2030 to spend on at least three of 10 uses Congress listed, from chronic disease prevention and clinician recruitment to technology, including training...
AI tools: the evidence by category
all AI toolsWhat the published studies show for each kind of AI tool, with the tools reviewed in each.
- Reviewed Nov 12, 2026Ambient scribes and inbox drafts: what the evidence shows
Ambient scribes draft visit notes from the clinician-patient conversation, and inbox tools draft replies to patients' portal messages, for clinicians to review.
- Reviewed Nov 12, 2026Clinical questions and evidence search: what the evidence shows
AI search tools and chatbots that answer clinicians' medical questions in plain language, from the medical literature, an expert-written reference or a general-purpose model.
- Reviewed Nov 12, 2026Patient-facing chatbots and agents: what the evidence shows
Chatbots and voice agents that talk with patients directly, for symptom checking and triage, pre-visit intake and health-system phone calls.
- Reviewed Nov 5, 2026Mental health chatbots: what the evidence shows
Chatbots and conversational AI apps that deliver cognitive behavioral therapy exercises and emotional support, or take self-referrals and intake information for psychological therapy services.
- Reviewed Nov 13, 2026Imaging: stroke and emergencies: what the evidence shows
Software that reads emergency imaging for suspected stroke, hemorrhage and other urgent findings and alerts radiologists and treatment teams.
- Reviewed Oct 29, 2026Imaging: fractures and bone: what the evidence shows
Software that marks suspected fractures, dislocations and joint effusions on radiographs, or flags vertebral compression fractures on CT scans done for other reasons, for the reading clinician.
- Reviewed Nov 12, 2026Imaging: cancer and tuberculosis screening: what the evidence shows
Software that reads screening mammograms and chest X-rays, scores each exam for breast cancer, lung nodules or tuberculosis and marks suspicious areas.
- Reviewed Oct 29, 2026Imaging: reports and image quality: what the evidence shows
Software that drafts radiology report impressions, removes noise from MRI scans so protocols can run faster, or outlines and scores suspicious lesions on prostate MRI for the radiologist.
- Reviewed Nov 12, 2026Cardiology: what the evidence shows
Software that reads ECGs, heart sounds and coronary CT scans to flag low ejection fraction, murmurs and coronary narrowings that limit blood flow.
- Reviewed Nov 5, 2026Sepsis, deterioration and hypotension alerts: what the evidence shows
Software that uses EHR and monitoring data to flag hospital patients at risk of sepsis or clinical deterioration, or surgical patients at risk of low blood pressure.
- Reviewed Oct 29, 2026Neurology, development and sleep: what the evidence shows
Software that flags seizures on EEG, scores sleep studies and aids autism diagnosis in young children, producing results for neurologists, sleep physicians and pediatric clinicians to review.
- Reviewed Oct 29, 2026Point-of-care screening: what the evidence shows
AI devices that check for diabetic retinopathy at the point of care, or help primary care physicians decide whether to refer a skin lesion.
- Reviewed Nov 5, 2026Endoscopy and pathology: what the evidence shows
AI that flags possible polyps during colonoscopy, or suspicious tissue on digitized biopsy slides, for the physician to review.
- Reviewed Oct 29, 2026Oncology and radiation therapy: what the evidence shows
AI that drafts organ and lymph node contours for radiation treatment planning, or estimates a prostate cancer patient's risk of metastasis from biopsy slides to guide treatment decisions.
- Reviewed Nov 12, 2026Diabetes and chronic disease: what the evidence shows
Software that analyzes glucose, insulin and laboratory data to recommend insulin doses, coach patients between visits or estimate the risk that chronic kidney disease will progress.
- Reviewed Nov 5, 2026Prior authorization, coding and payer AI: what the evidence shows
Algorithms that insurers and their contractors use to approve, limit or deny coverage, and tools that health systems use to code visits and handle prior authorization paperwork.
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