The more major statewide organizations and institutions learn about how Kaiser is deploying artificial intelligence in its behavioral health services, the more they are speaking out against it.
Earlier this month, the California Democratic Party passed a resolution affirming that “artificial intelligence in mental and behavioral healthcare must support and augment, rather than replace the clinical judgment of licensed clinicians, and must prioritize patient safety, informed consent, algorithmic transparency, human oversight of clinical decisions, and the preservation of human-centered care.”
The resolution came just weeks after NUHW filed a complaint with state officials, documenting that Kaiser was triaging patients seeking care via online questionnaires linked to digital algorithms that make immediate decisions about the type of care offered to patients without any review by a licensed therapist.
“What Kaiser is doing violates the law and professional ethics,” NUHW President Sophia Mendoza said. “Our members won’t stand for it, and our allies in government and advocacy organizations won’t stand for it either.”
Kaiser has taken a 180-degree turn on the use of artificial intelligence in negotiations with its 2,400 behavioral health clinicians in Northern California, since negotiations started over a year ago.
After agreeing to language in its contract for mental health professionals in Southern California last year that its intention for A.I. is to support the work of clinicians, not replace them, Kaiser has refused to agree to the same language in Northern California.
When clinicians asked about the reversal, Kaiser officials insisted they needed “flexibility” on A.I.
Democratic officials aren’t the only ones worried about Kaiser’s increasing use of A.I. in behavioral health, especially given that Kaiser has been penalized over $200 million since 2023 for mental health parity violations.
During a recent hearing in San Francisco, leaders of the National Association of Social Workers and the Psychotherapy Action Network spoke out against Kaiser’s stance on A.I.
“Decisions about how quickly someone receives care or what level of care they need should not be influenced by technology that may reinforce existing disparities,” Smith told members of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. “A.I. can be a helpful tool to support administrative tasks or assist clinicians, but it should never replace the professional judgment of licensed behavioral health providers, especially when patients are seeking help during moments of crisis.”
The full Democratic Party Resolution:
Resolution 26.07.039
Protecting Human-Centered Mental and Behavioral Healthcare while using Artificial Intelligence as a Tool to Support and Augment.
WHEREAS The National Alliance on Mental Illness California found that 5.5 million Californians have a mental health condition and that Californians are over five times more likely to be forced out-of-network for mental healthcare than for primary care; and
WHEREAS Major healthcare providers in California, including Kaiser Permanente, the state’s largest private provider of behavioral health services, are deploying artificial intelligence tools for patient screening, triage, documentation, and care recommendations in mental and behavioral healthcare; and
WHEREAS A.I. applications can generate clinical recommendations in seconds, this has raised documented concerns about transparency, privacy, accountability, and, more importantly, the concerns over the erosion of human empathy and professional judgment so essential to effective mental healthcare;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the California Democratic Party affirms that artificial intelligence in mental and behavioral healthcare must support and augment, rather than replace the clinical judgment of licensed clinicians, and must prioritize patient safety, informed consent, algorithmic transparency, human oversight of clinical decisions, and the preservation of human-centered care.
