Australia seeks public feedback on safe and responsible AI in health and aged care
Oleh Si Ying Thian
Australia’s Department of Health and Aged Care (DHAC) is currently reviewing legislations for AI use in the healthcare setting, after being given funding in the federal budget.
The Department of Health and Aged Care (DHAC) has been allocated A$1.5 million (S$1.3 million) from the federal budget to review and strengthen legislations for AI use in health and care settings. Image: Canva
The Department of Health and Aged Care (DHAC) has launched a public consultation exercise to clarify the benefits and risks of artificial intelligence (AI) and potential regulatory changes in Australia’s healthcare system.
Healthcare has been identified by the Australian government as an AI priority sector to reform. This year’s federal budget has allocated A$1.5 million (S$1.3 million) to DHAC to review and strengthen existing legislations for AI use in health and care settings.
The public consultation opened on September 13, and will close on October 14.
GovInsider covered the key points raised in a webinar organised by DHAC and the Australian Alliance for Artificial Intelligence (AAAiH) around Australia’s approach to regulating AI in healthcare.
AI regulation a whole-of-government effort
DHAC is reviewing the legislation in coordination with two other government agencies, including the Department of Industry, Science and Resources (DISR) and Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA).
This is following announcements on Digital Transformation Agency (DTA)’s new policy, which came into effect from September 1, informing the whole-of-government’s responsible use of AI, FSTMedia reported.
In the last two years, Australia has seen efforts made by both federal and state governments to develop a nationally consistent framework for AI assurance, GovInsider recently reported.
The two government agencies involved in DHAC’s review are concurrently running separate public consultations - with DISR on mandatory guardrails for high-risk AI settings and TGA on therapeutic goods.
DHAC’s AI Programme Manager, Lesley-Anne Farmer, acknowledged during the webinar that other AI initiatives across Australia, including a review of consumer and copyright laws that was announced earlier, were ongoing.
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‘Balanced approach’ to the review
Farmer emphasised that DHAC is considering both the benefits and risks of AI use in the healthcare setting.
A combination of different regulatory tools, including non-regulatory changes like capacity building and public education efforts, will be considered for this public consultation to both govern and support AI implementation in the healthcare setting.
“This is not a pure technology-focused consultation,” said Farmer, adding that it is important for members of public to consider the healthcare setting when submitting their feedback, especially in terms of affected user groups and service delivery.
This July, DHAC released the five-year Aged Care Data and Digital Strategy to tap on technology for aged care reforms, which includes piloting AI technologies, Healthcare IT News reported.
Farmer also recognised AI regulation as a global issue. “The Australian government is absolutely in regular discussions with other governments at multiple levels and economy-wide [across sectors].
“So, there’s lots of potential for continued cross-border collaboration. International alignment and implications are an important part of any regulatory change,” she explained.
Earlier this year, DISR partnered with Singapore’s tech regulator, Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA), and industry partners to test both country’s AI ethics principles and address the challenges of deploying AI across different regions.
Scope of public consultation
Farmer’s presentation highlighted a wide range of AI use cases in healthcare, including AI robots for companions in aged care homes, generative AI (GenAI)-powered scribes for clinical notes, clinical decision support, chatbots, and AI in radiology and screening.
The consultation paper lays out 19 questions covering specific topics and issues on responsible AI use specific to health and care settings.
The topics range from clinical care, billing, insurance, digital systems, consent and privacy, health data, training, literacy, and competency, to liability and responsibility.
DHAC will also be reviewing some existing legislations – what they termed as “high priority legislation” which may be implicated in regulating AI. Some of these legislations include the Health Insurance Act 1973, Healthcare Identifiers Act 2010, Aged Care Act Bill 2023, and more.
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