What We’re Reading: ChatGPT in Health Care; Menthol Ban Meeting; Health System Cyberattack Impact

How ChatGPT Is Changing the Health Care Industry

One year after the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, the generative artificial intelligence (AI) model is already changing the health care industry while also raising questions about AI’s promises and limitations, according to Axios. Although health care professionals have used AI and algorithms for decades, ChatGPT and other generative AI models have supercharged their use across research and care delivery. Over the past year, ChatGPT has passed medical licensing exams, advanced how researchers develop new medicines, and helped doctors cut down on paperwork. Despite its advancements, health care professionals also worry about AI chatbots’ potential to deliver harmful misinformation, amplify bias, and undermine medical education; the medical community strongly dismissed the idea that AI could replace doctors’ role in diagnosing patients.

Biden Health Officials Meet With Tobacco Lobbyists On Menthol Ban

Twenty-four Biden officials met with the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) on November 20 to discuss the FDA’s proposal to ban menthol cigarettes, according to STAT. The meeting also included a lobbyist from the cigarette company Altria, who sponsors NOBLE, as well as representatives from other tobacco companies like Reynolds American and Philip Morris International. This meeting is notable because top Biden officials, like FDA Commissioner Robert Califf, MD; HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra; and White House Domestic Policy Advisor Neera Tanden, attended despite not participating in previous related meetings. Also, the tobacco industry’s involvement in the meeting raises questions about their influence as public health organizations have not yet been able to meet with the White House on the matter.

How Health Care Systems’ Vulnerability Can Put Patients at Risk

A recent hospital cyberattack shows how the vulnerability of health care systems can put patients at risk, according to CBS News. The Institute for Security and Technology noted that at least 299 hospitals have suffered ransomware attacks in 2023, one of the most recent impacting Ardent Health Services’ 30 hospitals and more than 200 health care sites across 6 states. The attack resulted in Ardent protectively taking its computer network offline, causing its facilities to divert ambulances and reschedule non-emergent, elective procedures, including an open-heart surgery and an annual cancer check. Health care professionals explained that these money-motivated attacks affect human lives since offline systems prevent them from effectively treat patients, especially those with life-threatening time-sensitive medical conditions like a stroke or heart attack.