Medicare agency CMS runs 1,700-member Slack where Microsoft, OpenAI and others shape policy on AI apps and medical records access
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| Source: Techmeme | Original article
CMS’s Medicare agency runs a 1,700‑member Slack where Microsoft, OpenAI and other tech firms collaborate with officials to shape policy on AI applications and medical‑record access.
A Medicare agency has been running a private Slack channel of roughly 1,700 participants that includes representatives from Microsoft, OpenAI and a range of other technology firms. The forum, overseen by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), is being used to discuss how artificial‑intelligence applications should be allowed to access patients’ medical records and to shape emerging policy around those tools.
The existence of such a large, industry‑heavy dialogue inside a federal health‑care agency raises questions about the balance of influence between regulators and the companies whose products stand to benefit. By bringing together “elite techies, financiers and high‑level Trump administration officials,” the channel creates a direct line for private firms to weigh in on rules that could affect data privacy, security and the broader rollout of AI in clinical settings. Critics argue that the lack of public transparency could blur the line between advisory input and policy‑making, especially as AI tools become more integrated into diagnosis, billing and patient monitoring.
The development follows recent moves by the current administration to tighten oversight of AI, including a mandate announced on Oct. 10 that companies must promptly disclose model‑related incidents. Observers will be watching whether CMS formalises any recommendations emerging from the Slack discussions, how Congress and watchdog groups respond, and whether the agency will open the conversation to broader stakeholder input. The next steps could shape the regulatory framework governing AI‑driven health‑care services across the United States.
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