State Lawmakers Eye Guardrails for Use of AI in Healthcare

In late September, California became one of the first states to establish some ground rules for the use of artificial intelligence in healthcare when Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed into law AB 3030 and SB 1120.

The first of those bills, by Sen. Josh Becker (D), lays out guidelines for how AI may be used to make decisions on insurance coverage. The second, by Assemblywoman Lisa Calderon (D), requires providers to disclose to patients when the providers use generative AI to communicate with them. Together the bills represent the early trickle of what is sure to become a torrent of legislation over the coming months to regulate the use of AI in the healthcare sector. In December, we predicted that the use of AI technology in healthcare would be a hot topic among legislators, given its potential to lead to discriminatory or even deadly practices. Less than two months later, at least 37 bills dealing with AI in healthcare have been introduced in 11 states, according to LexisNexis® State Net® data. A dozen of those measures deal substantially with the subject:

• In Arkansas, HB 1297, by Rep. Lee Johnson (R), would regulate the use of AI by health insurers.

• In Massachusetts, SB 268, by Sen. Michael Moore (D), would regulate the use of AI tools in healthcare decision-making.

• In Montana, a draft proposal by Democrat Rep. Jill Cohenour, would “revise the usage of artificial intelligence in healthcare.”

• In New York, at least six bills have been introduced to regulate how automated decisions are made using AI, protect consumers from the misuse of AI, establish an AI bill of rights in the Empire State, or license AI, all of which could apply to the use of AI in healthcare.

• In Rhode Island, SB 13, by Sen. Linda Ujifusa (D), and HB 5172, by Rep. Susan Donovan (D), would both promote “transparency and accountability” when AI is used by health insurers to manage coverage and claims.

• In Texas, HB 1709, by Rep. Giovanni Capriglione (R), would regulate the use of AI in certain instances, including in healthcare and insurance.

Dozens of AI-in-Healthcare Bills Already Introduced

A little over a month into 2025, at least 37 bills dealing with AI in healthcare have been introduced in 11 states, according to the LexisNexis State Net legislative tracking system. Analysis by the National Conference of State Legislatures indicates that 51 such measures were introduced in all of 2024.

The increasing volume of such proposals in recent years indicates a growing interest among state lawmakers in the intersection of AI and healthcare.

According to analysis by the National Conference of State Legislatures, 13 measures dealing with AI and healthcare were introduced and two of those measures were enacted in 2023. The measures covered a range of issues, including the involvement of AI in patient diagnosis, nurse staffing, mental health services, and discrimination by health insurers.

In 2024, states introduced 51 such measures. They touched on some of the same issues as in 2023, as well as several others, including disclosure of the use of AI in provider communications with patients and the use of AI in healthcare coverage utilization review, healthcare innovation, fraud detection, interpreter services for the deaf and hard of hearing, and diagnostic breast imaging. Nine of the measures were enacted.

None of the measures dealing with AI in healthcare that have been introduced in 2025 have been enacted yet. But just over a month into the new year, state lawmakers have already nearly matched the total number of introductions last year.

As the C-suite resource Chief Healthcare Executive reported in early January: “In 2025, expect AI to remain a prime area of attention in the healthcare industry.”

—By SNCJ Correspondent BRIAN JOSEPH

Visit our webpage to connect with a LexisNexis® State Net® representative and learn how the State Net legislative and regulatory tracking service can help you identify, track, analyze and report on relevant legislative and regulatory developments.