Fast-Tracking AI Without Safeguards Is a Dangerous Prescription
- ANA California Staff
- Jul 28
- 2 min read
An ANA\California official statement in direct response to the White House’s AI Action Plan.
July 28, 2025
Sacramento, CA—The American Nurses Association\California (ANA\California) expresses deep concern over the White House’s AI Action Plan and its implications for healthcare delivery, workforce stability, and patient safety.
By prioritizing the rapid deployment of AI (artificial intelligence) in clinical settings—through so-called regulatory sandboxes and “try-first” adoption environments—the plan promotes experimentation without adequate ethical oversight, validation, or clinical governance. This is particularly alarming in sectors like nursing and healthcare, where mistakes can cost lives.
We are especially troubled by the directive instructing the Department of Commerce and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to eliminate references to misinformation, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), and climate change from AI frameworks. These omissions strip away essential protections against bias, misinformation, and systemic inequity in the very systems patients and providers are being asked to trust.
The plan frames distrust, regulatory complexity, and slow governance as barriers to AI adoption in healthcare. We strongly disagree. These are not barriers—they are safeguards. Nurses have a professional obligation, as outlined in Provision 6 of the ANA Code of Ethics, to maintain ethical care environments that support safe clinical decision-making. Eliminating oversight and fast-tracking unproven technologies undermines that responsibility. Further, Provision 9 reminds us that health equity is a core nursing commitment. Removing DEI considerations risks deepening disparities among veterans, LGBTQIA+ individuals, communities of color, and other underserved populations.
The appropriate response to innovation is not deregulation—it is concerted, ethical development that protects patients, shields healthcare systems from liability, and upholds professional standards of care.
ANA\California urges federal leaders to:
Reinstate DEI and safety considerations in all federally supported AI frameworks.
Halt the fast-tracking of clinical AI tools without rigorous peer-reviewed validation and ethical review.
Center frontline healthcare professionals—especially nurses—in the development, oversight, and governance of AI in clinical environments.
We support innovation. But in healthcare, speed cannot come at the cost of safety, ethics, or equity.
Sincerely,
Dr. Marketa Houskova, DNP, MAIA, BA, RN
Chief Executive Officer
1107 9th St. Suite 350 Sacramento, CA 95814
O: (916) 346-4590
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About American Nurses Association\California (ANA\California)
ANA\California is a bi-partisan professional nursing organization representing the interests of more than 500,000 licensed registered nurses in California. Our mission is to optimize nursing contributions to the health and well-being of individuals, families, and communities. As a state-level professional advocacy organization, ANA\C has been extensively involved in legislative efforts supporting many bills, regulations, and policies that became California’s laws, and is currently assisting in making California a place of Nursing Excellence.
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