By all means move at a glacial pace, you know how that thrills me. The incomparable Meryl Streep says this as Miranda Priestly in the film The Devil Wears Prada. Is there a polite way to say this about the federal government’s exploration and regulation of AI in healthcare? I don’t think so. It is like the new Apple iPad advertisement – “Crush” – not even the typically polite British actor Hugh Grant could hold back, calling the video (depicting a huge hydraulic press crushing all the analog ways to create art) a “destruction of the human experience.” In the One Thoughtful Paragraph below, I review some of the ways the federal government is slow-walking this thing.
Other news proving that the feds are moving at a glacial pace:
- The U.S. House Ways and Means Committee marked up the Preserving Telehealth, Hospital, and Ambulance Access Act, which would extend COVID-era telehealth flexibilities for an additional two years. Yes, the Committee voted to advance the bill so it may be considered by the full House, which may then be considered by the Senate, which may then be signed by the President, so that this convenient and cost-effective access to medical services may continue. None of these next steps, however, are expected to happen anytime soon. And if it does get passed, this small, obvious step into the future will only last for two years.
- The Office of the National Cyber Director (ONCD) released version two of the National Cybersecurity Strategy Implementation Plan and a report on the cybersecurity posture of the U.S. It is another plan to do something. It says “promote” some activity 36 times.
- Despite the No Surprises Act being passed in 2020 and most provisions becoming effective in 2022, CMS just recently published an update to explain its lack of regulations on the No Surprises Act’s requirement to offer patients advanced explanation of benefits (AEOBs) for scheduled services and procedures. CMS also said it plans to issue provider FAQs later this year on generating good faith estimates of scheduled services and procedures for uninsured patients.
On Monday, May 6, we watched famous people respond to the Met Gala’s request to wear something nature-inspired for this year’s “Garden of Time” theme. And while we are sure Miranda Priestly would have said: “Florals…For spring? Groundbreaking…” many fashion icons responded with multiple flower and animal-inspired displays of creativity (including one made of sand). While I’m sure that Zendaya sat this one out, Monday, May 6 was also the day that responses were due to U.S. Representative Ami Bera’s Request for Information about how AI is being used in healthcare settings. The “tell me everything” request about AI in healthcare elicited multiple thoughtful responses from the American College of Surgeons, the Advanced Medical Technology Association (AdvaMed), the Alliance for Community Health Plans, and many others — like the American Hospital Association. Still, it was more evidence that not a lot is happening yet to regulate AI in healthcare. Indeed, U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar sent a letter to the FTC and the Attorney General’s office asking for an investigation (at a glacial pace, I’m sure) into using algorithms in healthcare pricing. Finally, we recently saw multiple agencies respond to the 180-day deadline in President Biden’s Executive Order (EO) about AI. Specifically, HHS was required to publish a plan (not do any actual activity) within 180 days that addressed the use of AI and automated systems in public benefits administration. I understand that coordinating several HHS subagencies to draft deliverables on the complex topic that is AI in healthcare in that time frame is pretty fast. But maybe we need a new movie to inspire a little Speed here.
