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News
A Slack workspace run by CMS has quietly become a lobbying hub where AI giants like Microsoft, Google, and OpenAI have been shaping federal health policy — largely out of public view. The group, with 1,700 members, has influenced the Medicare App Library and a new program reimbursing AI health apps. Doctors and legal experts are raising alarms about patient safety and regulatory oversight.
A government-run Slack workspace managed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has served as a behind-the-scenes hub where tech giants — including Microsoft, Google, OpenAI, Apple, and Anthropic — have been quietly lobbying Trump administration officials to fast-track AI health apps into the mainstream healthcare system. The group, which has grown to 1,700 members, has operated largely outside public regulatory channels, with legal experts warning it resembles a federal advisory committee that should be subject to transparency requirements.
CMS officials have openly promised industry participants that the agency would act as a "sales engine" for their apps, and the newly launched Medicare App Library — which promotes AI-driven health tools to millions of seniors — has been pitched to tech companies as a lucrative distribution channel. All of this has unfolded, as one CMS official put it, with "no regulation, no rulemaking."
Key Takeaways:
Why it matters: Physicians and patient advocates are sounding the alarm: AI health apps are being fast-tracked into Medicare without sufficient safety data, liability frameworks, or regulatory oversight — putting millions of vulnerable patients at risk.
