17 July 2026

Physician face “significant risk” of being held primarily responsible for patient harm caused by artificial intelligence under current legal frameworks, the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) warns.

The RACP has welcomed the Federal Government's announcement of AI frameworks, and says they must be accompanied by reforms to address gaps in the regulation of AI in Australia's healthcare system.

RACP spokesperson Professor Ian Scott says “Governance and regulatory frameworks have failed to keep pace with the rapid adoption of AI in clinical settings, exposing physicians to significant risks of sole legal liability if AI tools cause harm.

“The reality is that AI is fast becoming part of the way we provide healthcare - and so it should be when shown to improve care.

“AI is an important tool that is going to continue to transform the way we deliver healthcare. It would be a mistake not to be using AI in appropriate and responsible ways to improve the way we diagnose, treat and manage patients.

“But physicians need some urgent guardrails.”

The position statement, Using Artificial Intelligence in Clinical Practice states that ‘until such frameworks are enhanced, physicians are at significant risk of carrying primary responsibility for patient safety through their duty of care and being accountable for patient harm.’

Outside of the potential medical liabilities from AI-related harm, the RACP says the other concerns that healthcare systems must navigate include:

• Data or algorithmic bias
• Hallucinations (where AI generates false, misleading or fabricated information and presents it as factual),
• Lack of transparency in AI development, testing and deployment.

“Governments, deploying health organisations, AI developers and insurers have a duty to ensure responsibility is fairly distributed and not placed solely on the physician.

The position statement calls for indemnity, contractual and insurance arrangements that fairly apportion liability risk between model developers, vendors, employers, service providers (like hospitals and clinics), clinicians and users of AI.

The College also recommends that clinics should only use AI tools that have been reviewed by the TGA (or equivalent) when they influence clinical decisions.

Read the RACP Position Statement: Using artificial intelligence in clinical practice Position Statement