Patient Consent and The Right to Notice and Explanation of AI Systems Used in Health Care

Authors

Meghan E Hurley
Benjamin H Lang
Kristin Marie Kostick-Quenet
Jared N Smith
Jennifer Blumenthal-Barby

Publication Date

3-1-2025

Journal

The American Journal of Bioethics

DOI

10.1080/15265161.2024.2399828

PMID

39288291

PMCID

PMC12143229

PubMedCentral® Posted Date

6-6-2025

PubMedCentral® Full Text Version

Author MSS

Published Open-Access

yes

Keywords

Humans, Informed Consent, United States, Trust, Delivery of Health Care, Patient Rights, Disclosure, Artificial intelligence, consent, trust, patient-centered, AI policy, regulation

Abstract

Given the need for enforceable guardrails for artificial intelligence (AI) that protect the public and allow for innovation, the U.S. Government recently issued a Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights which outlines five principles of safe AI design, use, and implementation. One in particular, the right to notice and explanation, requires accurately informing the public about the use of AI that impacts them in ways that are easy to understand. Yet, in the healthcare setting, it is unclear what goal the right to notice and explanation serves, and the moral importance of patient-level disclosure. We propose three normative functions of this right: (1) to notify patients about their care, (2) to educate patients and promote trust, and (3) to meet standards for informed consent. Additional clarity is needed to guide practices that respect the right to notice and explanation of AI in healthcare while providing meaningful benefits to patients.