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Draft bill 644 would ban AI‑provided therapy, restrict chatbots and set civil penalties
Summary
Draft bill 644, presented to the committee, would bar offering or advertising AI‑provided mental health services in Vermont, require that therapeutic communications be delivered by licensed humans, cite academic findings of chatbot harms and deaths in bill findings, and assign enforcement authority to the attorney general and professional regulators.
The committee reviewed draft bill 644, which focuses on mental health chatbots and the use of artificial intelligence in therapeutic settings.
Katie McLean, Office of Legislative Council, summarized the bill's findings and purpose, saying the measure "to safeguard individuals seeking mental health services in Vermont from psychological harm, including death by suicide, by ensuring that these services are delivered by mental health professionals and not AI systems." The bill recites research from academic centers and watchdog groups that evaluated therapy chatbots and reported inappropriate responses, failures…
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