When AI Technology and HIPAA Collide
"HIPAA Covered Entities beware! Your vendors are probably implementing artificial intelligence (“AI”) technology within their service offerings. Today, an all-too-common scenario involves an email message or telephone call from your trusted third-party vendor indicating that they are going to integrate AI technology into their service offerings that will involve the use of your patients’ Protected Health Information (PHI). They claim that by using AI technology, they can provide their deliverables in less time, generate useful insights more rapidly, interpret medical imaging, improve the delivery of diagnosis and treatment, or perform accurate predictive analytics.
However, lurking surreptitiously behind the potential benefits of using PHI in AI technology lies a murky mix of risks that could negatively impact you, your vendors, and even your patients, especially when HIPAA compliance and patient PHI are involved. So how should a Covered Entity respond to its Business Associates’ use of patient PHI in AI technology?"