Requires licensed mental health professionals seeking to offer AI-assisted mental health services to obtain approval from a licensing board, inform patients about AI use, and obtain patient consent; requires AI systems delivering mental health services to prioritize patient safety and well-being. Imposes disciplinary action by a licensing board for violations.
Instructs licensed mental health professionals who wish to provide mental health services through AI to seek approval from a licensing board, inform patients of the use of AI in their treatment, provide non-AI alternatives, and obtain patient consent.
Requires any AI system used to provide mental health services to prioritize the safety and well-being of patients and be subject to continuous monitoring by a licensed mental health professional.
Establishes disciplinary action by the relevant professional licensing board for mental health professionals who violate the provisions above.
This document has not been enacted or otherwise finalized and is subject to change. This summary is based on a copy of the document collected 2024-10-16 - refer to the official source for the most current version.
Key facts
🏛️ This document has been proposed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, but is not yet enacted.
For authoritative text and metadata, visit the official source.
🎯 This document primarily applies to the private sector, rather than the government.
📜 This document's name is An Act regulating the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in providing mental health services..
AGORA also tracks this document under the name Massachusetts AI in Mental Health Act .
Themes AI risks, applications, governance strategies, and other themes addressed in AGORA documents.
This document has not been enacted or otherwise finalized and is subject to change. This summary is based on a copy of the document collected 2024-10-16 - refer to the official source for the most current version.
This is an unofficial copy. The document has been
archived and reformatted in plaintext for AGORA. Footnotes, tables, and
similar material may be omitted. For the official text, visit the original source.
This text may be out of date. According to the latest data in AGORA,
this document has been proposed, but is not yet enacted or otherwise
finalized. This text was collected 2024-10-16 and
may have been revised in the meantime. Visit the official source for authoritative text.
SECTION 1. Chapter 123 of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2020 Official Edition, is hereby amended by inserting after section 36C the following section:
Section 1: Purpose
The purpose of this act is to regulate the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in providing mental health services in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in order to ensure the safety and well-being of individuals seeking mental health treatment, while also allowing for the responsible use of AI in mental health services.
Amends laws to regulate AI use in Massachusetts mental health services for safety and responsible utilization.
Amends laws to regulate AI use in Massachusetts mental health services for safety and responsible utilization.
Section 2: Definitions
(a) "Artificial Intelligence" or "AI" means any technology that can simulate human intelligence, including but not limited to, natural language processing, training language models, reinforcement learning from human feedback and machine learning systems.
(b) "Mental health services" means any service provided by a licensed mental health professional for the purpose of diagnosing, treating, or preventing mental illness or emotional or behavioral disorders.
(c) "Licensed mental health professional" means any individual who is licensed by the state of Massachusetts to provide mental health services, including but not limited to, psychiatrists, psychologists, licensed mental health counselors (LMHCs), licensed independent clinical social workers (LICSWs) and other professional counselors.
Defines "Artificial Intelligence" as technology simulating human intelligence, including language processing and machine learning.
Defines "Artificial Intelligence" as technology simulating human intelligence, including language processing and machine learning.
Section 3: Regulation of AI in Mental Health Services
(a) Any licensed mental health professional who wishes to provide mental health services through the use of AI shall first seek approval from the relevant professional licensing board.
(b) Any AI system used to provide mental health services must be designed to prioritize the safety and well-being of individuals seeking treatment and must be continuously monitored by a licensed mental health professional to ensure its safety and effectiveness.
(c) Any licensed mental health professional providing mental health services through the use of AI shall inform patients of the use of AI in their treatment and provide them with the option to receive treatment from a licensed mental health professional.
(d) Any licensed mental health professional providing mental health services through the use of AI shall disclose the use of AI to patients in advance and obtain their informed consent.
Requires licensed professionals to seek board approval for AI use in mental health services.
Requires licensed professionals to seek board approval for AI use in mental health services.
Section 4: Penalties
(a) Any licensed mental health professional who violates the provisions of this act shall be subject to disciplinary action by the relevant professional licensing board.
Subjects any violating mental health professional to disciplinary action by the licensing board.
Subjects any violating mental health professional to disciplinary action by the licensing board.