United States (state medical boards) · guidance
FSMB AI / state boards: what it asks, and the records to keep
The FSMB's House of Delegates adopted policy in April 2024 saying physicians stay accountable for care delivered with AI and setting expectations on understanding tools, documentation, informed consent, privacy and bias. Boards cannot regulate AI products directly, but they discipline licensees, so this policy signals how boards are likely to judge AI-related complaints.
01 / What it asks
What FSMB AI / state boards asks
Physicians and other licensees who use AI in clinical practice, and the state medical and osteopathic boards that license and discipline them.
- 01Accept that the physician is ultimately responsible and accountable for harms from AI used in care.
- 02Understand the AI tools used well enough to explain how an output was reached and why it was followed or not.
- 03Document the rationale when deviating from an AI recommendation, and be able to give a reasonable account of how the AI reached its output and why it was followed or not.
- 04Obtain patient consent before applying an AI tool to their care and be ready to disclose its use.
- 05Know the security measures protecting patient data in AI tools, and review AI-generated records for accuracy.
- 06Make reasonable efforts to identify and address bias in AI outputs; pursue AI-focused continuing education.
02 / AI work
Where it touches AI work
The policy is entirely about AI in clinical practice, from ambient documentation scribes to diagnostic and treatment recommendations. It treats AI as a tool that can support but generally not replace physician judgment.
03 / Dates
The dates that matter
Policy adopted by FSMB House of Delegates at 112th Annual Meeting
FSMB publicly releases the AI recommendations
New York Office of the Professions posts the policy for licensees
Idaho and Iowa bills to license 'autonomous service providers' fail
FSMB leaders say AI is not ready for independent licensure; update underway
04 / Enforcement
Who enforces it
None directly; FSMB has no enforcement power. State medical boards may discipline licensees under existing unprofessional-conduct and standard-of-care rules, with sanctions from reprimand to license revocation.
05 / Records
Records an organisation keeps
What an auditor or an inquiry usually asks to see. Your obligations depend on your role and your facts.
- 01Chart notes documenting AI use and clinical rationale
- 02Patient consent or disclosure records for AI tools
- 03Vendor security and data-handling review for AI tools
- 04AI-related CME completion records
Optional evidence · where Planisphere fits
Keep a record anyone can check
When your team meets a duty, Planisphere can seal the event it reports as a receipt.
A disclosure shown, a review signed, a model change approved: the event your system reports.
The event becomes a sealed receipt, dated and attributed to whoever is signed in.
Paste the receipt into Verify. No account or key.
A record supports your compliance evidence process. It is not a legal finding or a certification. Systems that call Planisphere's gate API can also hold or refuse an action before it runs.
QUESTIONS
The questions that come next
Who is liable when a physician follows an AI recommendation that causes harm?+
For medical board purposes, the physician. The FSMB policy adopted in April 2024 says the physician is ultimately responsible for using AI and should be held accountable for harms that result. Boards regulate licensees, not tools, and the policy says a board's scrutiny depends on how closely the AI function resembles the practice of medicine and how much risk it poses. Following an AI output does not shift the standard of care. Malpractice liability, and any claims against the vendor, are decided by courts under state law, which the FSMB policy does not settle. Read the full answer
What do state medical boards say about using AI in clinical decisions?+
The main reference is the FSMB policy adopted in April 2024, which treats AI as a tool that can support but generally not replace physician judgment. Physicians stay accountable; should understand a tool well enough to explain how it reached an output and why they followed it or not; should document why they deviated from an AI recommendation; should obtain patient consent and disclose AI use; should address bias; and should take AI-focused continuing education. How individual boards apply it varies. FSMB leaders said in August 2026 that the guidance is being updated for agentic AI. Read the full answer
Do I need patient consent to use AI in a clinical encounter?+
Professional guidance says yes: the FSMB policy adopted in April 2024 says physicians should obtain a patient's consent before applying an AI tool to their care and should disclose when and how AI is used. That policy is not law, so whether consent or disclosure is legally required depends on your state. For example, Texas's Responsible Artificial Intelligence Governance Act, in force since January 1, 2026, requires health care providers to disclose AI use in a service or treatment. Check your state's laws and your medical board's position. Read the full answer
SOURCES
Go back to the source
Federation of State Medical Boards
New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions
CHANGE LOG
What changed, and when
Rebuilt from primary sources; facts checked on this date.
Related: FSMB AI / state boards for medicine AI workflows · State Bar AI Opinions · SOPIPA · NYC Local Law 144 · Colorado AI Act · Texas TRAIGA · Utah AI Policy Act