Scrutiny on AI Decision-Making and Nondiscrimination in Health Care Programs
Techstrong.ai, Wednesday, September 25th, 2024
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recently published a final rule clarifying that health care organizations, health insurers, and clinicians who participate in Medicare, Medicaid or any other federally funded program are legally responsible for managing the risk of discrimination.
In focus is something called Algorithmic Discrimination, with scrutiny on AI decision-making and how it may affect ethnic minorities, women, older people and people with intellectual disabilities, and extending to all protected categories. The rule is essentially a classification of the elements of Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, age or disability in certain health care programs and activities.
HHS Secretary Javier Becerra called the rule 'a giant step forward for this country toward a more equitable and inclusive health care system, and means that Americans across the country now have a clear way to act on their rights against discrimination when they go to the doctor, talk with their health plan, or engage with health programs run by HHS.