Physician Groups Warn Against AI Supplanting Physician Judgment

October 1, 2026 by matray

Six major U.S. physician organizations are warning against treating artificial intelligence as a substitute for physician expertise, emphasizing that doctors must retain professional judgment and responsibility for patient care as AI becomes more widely incorporated into clinical practice.

The American Medical Association, American Academy of Family Physicians, American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Physicians and American College of Surgeons issued a joint statement Sept. 30 addressing the role of AI in healthcare.

The organizations pushed back against suggestions that AI is inherently better informed than physicians or that doctors should be expected to consult the technology before making clinical decisions.

“Statements suggesting AI is inherently better informed than physicians, or that physicians cannot be trusted to make clinical decisions without first consulting this technology, diminish physician expertise and risk undermining patients’ trust,” the groups said.

The statement comes as the growing use of AI in clinical decision-making raises questions about the respective roles and responsibilities of physicians, healthcare organizations and technology developers when the technology influences patient care.

The physician groups emphasized that clinical decision-making involves more than evaluating information generated by a technological system. Physicians consider patients in context, ask questions, assess individual circumstances and draw on their training and experience, they said.

Physicians also “exercise professional judgment and take responsibility for the care they provide,” according to the statement.

The organizations said physicians have long embraced technologies that improve care and acknowledged that AI has significant potential to provide new tools and insights. However, they said patient safety, physician expertise and the human elements of clinical practice should guide the development and use of those tools.

“Pitting physicians against technology or suggesting AI should replace physician expertise does not advance this important work,” the groups said. “We need to move carefully, and we need to get this right.”

The organizations also called for physicians to have a central role in determining how AI is developed and incorporated into medical practice.

“As medical societies representing physicians across the country, we are committed to ensuring physicians help lead the responsible development and use of AI in medicine,” they said.