Augmented intelligence in medicine | American Medical Association

The AMA House of Delegates uses the term augmented intelligence (AI) as a conceptualization of artificial intelligence that focuses on the assistive role of AI, emphasizing that its design enhances human intelligence rather than replacing it.

The AMA is committed to ensuring that AI can realize its full potential to advance clinical care and improve the well-being of clinicians. As the number of AI-powered healthcare tools continues to grow, it is essential that they are designed, developed and deployed in an ethical, equitable and responsible manner. The use of AI in healthcare must be transparent for both doctors and patients.

In addition to medical devices, AI is increasingly used in healthcare administration or to reduce physician workload, and policies and guidance regarding the use of AI in healthcare, both with and without a device, are needed. Aware of this, WADA developed a new policy (PDF) which discusses the development, deployment and use of AI in healthcare, with a particular focus on:

• AI Monitoring in Healthcare
• When and what to disclose to advance AI transparency
• Generative AI policies and governance
• Responsibility of doctors for using AI-based technologies
• AI Data Privacy and Cybersecurity
• Payers’ use of AI and automated decision-making systems

In 2023, the AMA conducted a comprehensive study of the feelings of more than 1,000 physicians toward the use of AI in healthcare, including current use and future motivations for use, key concerns, areas of greatest opportunity, and adoption requirements.​ Given the rapidly evolving landscape of AI in healthcare, the WADA repeated the study at the end of 2024 (PDF). The objectives of this research remain:

• Capturing practicing physician sentiment regarding the increased use of AI in healthcare​
• Evaluate AI use cases based on familiarity, relevance, and usefulness​
• Identify key resources and areas where physicians need to consider implementing AI tools into their practice

Physicians remain largely enthusiastic about the potential of AI in healthcare, with 68% seeing at least some benefit from using AI in their practice, up from 65% in 2023. We also saw AI use increase from 38% in 2023 to 66% of physicians reporting using some type of AI tool in their practice in 2024.

However, major concerns remain as physicians continue to explore the impact of these tools on their practice. Implementation guidance and research, including clinical evidence, remains critical to helping physicians adopt AI tools.

AI plays an increasingly important role at all stages of the medical education continuum, both as a tool for educators and learners and as a subject of study in its own right. AI has the potential to transform the educational experience under precision education and transform patient care under precision health. Learn more on the impact of AI on medical education.

The AMA partners with leaders in technology and healthcare to bring critical information to physicians on the potential applications of AI and ensure that physicians have a voice in shaping the role of AI in medicine.

• WADA welcomes new federal government for 2025 AI action plan and the opportunity to work with the administration to address key areas in the development of AI regulation, policy and implementation. Learn more.
• A Summary of the AMA problem (PDF) provides a brief overview of recent state legislative activity and discusses three key AI policy areas for state legislative/regulatory activity: health plans’ use of AI, transparency, and physician accountability.
• To develop practical guidance for AI in healthcare, the AMA reviewed the literature on the challenges of AI in healthcare and reflected on existing guidance. These results are published in an article in Journal of Medical Systems: Trustworthy Augmented Intelligence in Healthcare.

The current CPT® code set drives communication across healthcare by enabling seamless processing and advanced analytics for medical procedures and services.

The AMA offers several resources to provide guidance on the updated CPT® code set to classify various AI applications as well as advisory expertise through the Digital Medicine Payment Advisory Group (DMPAG). DMPAG identifies barriers to digital medicine adoption and provides comprehensive solutions for coding, payment, coverage, and more. Stay up to date on criteria For CPT® codes, go to the apps and read frequently asked questions.

Learn how AI is used in healthcare as the medical community better understands AI.

There is technological capacity for algorithms and AI tools to transform healthcare, but real challenges remain to ensure tools are responsibly developed, implemented and maintained in your practice. Learn more about the emerging AI landscape.

The AMA Board of Directors is responsible for implementing AMA policy. Given the number of stakeholders and policymakers involved in the evolution of AI in healthcare, it is important that the AMA not only adopts a base level of policy to guide engagement, but also continues to refine policy as this technology develops. The AMA Board of Directors reports included here summarize the need for additional AMA policy on AI. Thanks to WADA Policy ResearchUsers can search for current AI policy initiatives.

Physicians need help adapting to the rapidly evolving role of AI in clinical practice. THE AMA STEPS Forward collection of digital health solutions helps provide insights into integrating AI into workflows, reducing administrative burden and improving patient care, while addressing critical issues such as ethics, bias and physician well-being. By providing case studies, implementation strategies, and expert perspectives, the AMA provides physicians with the knowledge and tools needed to adopt AI responsibly and effectively. Explore the following open-access, CME-eligible resources to stay ahead of the curve in digital health.

Explore the components of AI in healthcare and dig deeper into the potential challenges and opportunities for physicians. An article from the AMA Ed Hub™ explores how AI, used ethically, has the power to serve as a transformative and powerful tool for physicians.