Can physicians be sued for AI mistakes?

As artificial intelligence moves into exam rooms, one question keeps coming up: when an algorithm errs or makes a faulty recommendation, who is responsible? For now, the answer is rarely simple. Legal frameworks are still catching up to the technology, and courts have few precedents to draw on.

Liability is unlikely to rest with a single party. Physicians, health systems and AI developers may all share some responsibility, depending on how a tool was built, validated, purchased and used, a question explored in the Medical Economics feature story on who's liable when AI gets it wrong. Manufacturers can face product liability claims, while physicians remain accountable under traditional malpractice standards for the care they deliver. Because AI is not yet firmly part of the standard of care, doctors can find themselves in a bind. Relying on an opaque tool carries risk, but so can overriding it. Medical Economics has also examined this tension in its coverage of whether physicians are at fault for AI errors.

That uncertainty is driving practical advice. Experts encourage physicians to document how AI informs their decisions, disclose its use to patients and obtain informed consent where appropriate.

Medical Economics spoke with Valerie Grove, a malpractice attorney with Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, to learn more about this issue.