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Colorado committee adopts restrictions on AI in psychotherapy, requires clinician oversight and consent
Summary
After hours of testimony from therapists, families, and AI vendors, the Health & Human Services Committee approved amendments to HB 11‑95 to bar AI from delivering psychotherapy, require informed consent for AI use, and add limited exceptions for wellness tools; sponsors removed emotional‑detection language and added a wellness carve‑out. The bill advanced to the Committee of the Whole.
Lawmakers voted to advance House Bill 11‑95 after hearing hours of testimony about the risks and clinical limits of using artificial intelligence in psychotherapy. Sponsor Representative Mabry described the bill as ensuring ‘‘psychotherapy remains human delivered by licensed professionals’’ while allowing AI to assist in administrative and supportive tasks.
Clinicians and professional associations — including the Colorado Counseling Association, Colorado Psychological Association and Colorado Academy of Family Physicians — said AI lacks clinical judgment, malpractice coverage and board accountability. "AI systems are not accountable to licensing boards," said Dr. Michelle Dawson (Colorado Psychological Association). Family advocates and impacted parents recounted harms they attribute to therapeutic chatbots; some witnesses described suicides and grooming claims linked to companion chatbots.
Companies building clinically‑guardrailed AI tools urged a balanced approach. Representatives from SonderMind described products that are transparently AI, clinician‑led, HIPAA‑compliant and designed to redirect users who present clinical needs to a licensed clinician. Legal counsel from vendors asked for clearer allocation of liability between providers and technology developers.
Sponsors offered three amendments: L001 strikes the bill’s prohibition on AI detecting emotions (to avoid ambiguous technical scope) and adds explicit HIPAA/data‑privacy references; L002 clarifies wellness exceptions (non‑therapeutic apps); and L003 inserts an emergency petition/transition clause reflecting stakeholder concerns. With those amendments, the committee voted to send HB 11‑95 to the Committee of the Whole as amended (recorded roll 13–0 on the motion to advance).
What’s next: The bill will go to the Committee of the Whole; sponsors said they will continue negotiating provider liability language in subsequent drafting stages.
