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Lawmakers, clinicians and entrepreneurs push guarded adoption of AI in health care
Summary
Sen. Lisa Reynolds and health-sector speakers told the legislative committee on Sept. 30 that AI could reduce clinician administrative burden and spur economic development, but emphasized the need for governance, monitoring and patient-safety guardrails before broad clinical adoption.
Sen. Lisa Reynolds told the Joint Committee on Information Management and Technology that artificial intelligence offers a way to reduce administrative burdens for clinicians and improve access, but that the state needs guardrails to protect patients when AI is used for clinical decision-making.
"We must both embrace AI and health care as a way to streamline our work... and we must must regulate that," Reynolds said, framing the issue as both an operational and a policy priority. She said she helped host a virtual town hall on AI and health care that drew close to 100 participants and described economic-development opportunities if Oregon builds a welcoming environment for health-technology startups.
Bridget Barnes, senior vice president and chief information officer at Oregon Health & Science University, described OHSU’s AI governance committee, which she said was created nearly three years ago. "Anyone who wishes to use an AI solution is required by OHSU policy to receive approval from this governance group prior to implementing that solution," Barnes said. She emphasized review criteria that include use case, bias and drift, patient-safety and data privacy and said OHSU monitors deployed tools for performance changes over time.
Entrepreneur Bill Kelly urged a pragmatic, phased approach that begins with administrative and patient-engagement tools rather than high-stakes diagnostic or treatment automation — "low stakes, high value activities that can be undertaken today," he said — and proposed a simple evaluation matrix for safety, cost and legal implications. Venture partner Shashi Jain described the sector’s funding needs and urged a principles-based framework that preserves innovation while protecting patients.
Committee members and presenters discussed the recent governor’s AI advisory task force and a proposed legislative commission to continue policy work. Lawmakers said they want government and industry to collaborate on definitions, oversight approaches and timelines ahead of any broader regulatory steps.
The committee did not vote on legislation; members asked staff to continue convening stakeholders and to return with options and potential bill language for future consideration.
