The short answer: it depends entirely on what's underneath the tool, not the tool's name. A general consumer AI product with no Business Associate Agreement in place is not a safe place for patient information, no matter how useful the output looks. That's the line most physicians cross without realizing they've crossed it.
The question to ask before you paste anything into an AI tool: does this vendor sign a BAA, and does their product actually route data through a covered environment, not just claim to be "enterprise" or "secure" in marketing copy. Those are two different things. A BAA is a legal commitment. A security badge on a landing page is not.
Written by John M. Abrahams, MD — board-certified neurosurgeon, founder of New York Brain & Spine Surgery.
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