JOINT RELEASE: Legislation to Establish Guardrails for AI in Healthcare Signed Into Law

Colorado has enacted legislation to safeguard patients’ access to mental healthcare provided by licensed human professionals.
The law emphasizes that AI-generated algorithms cannot replace the expertise of human healthcare professionals.
The law prohibits the use of AI to independently provide therapy, ensuring clinical treatment and psychotherapy are administered by licensed providers.
The law also prevents AI chatbots from being marketed to patients as equivalent to licensed psychotherapists or counselors and bars misleading claims about confidentiality safeguards.
It allows licensed professionals to use AI for administrative purposes but under proper oversight.
The legislation aims to protect patients from the dangerous practice of AI chatbots mistaken for legitimate therapy.
The law includes disclosures on the use of AI for supplementary support, such as recording or transcribing meetings.
Recent studies and lawsuits suggest the risks of AI chatbots, including inappropriate responses to mental health conditions and recommendations of such harmful actions as suicide.