13 Oct Health Data News Roundup: States to Regulate Healthcare AI; Joint Commission and CHAI AI Guidance; Major AP Plans Scaling Back

Welcome to the Health Data Weekly News Roundup from IMAT Solutions. As the power of data continues to grow in the healthcare arena, today’s care organizations need to be on the forefront of all news and trends to help ensure that their data analytics efforts deliver accountable and informed care. Each week, we will provide you with the actionable news you need to meet these goals.

How AI-Ready Health Data Supports the Joint Commission and CHAI Guidance
The Joint Commission and Coalition for Health AI’s (CHAI) new guidance calls for continuous monitoring of AI tools in healthcare. In his latest blog, Mark Coetzer, VP of Business Development at IMAT Solutions, explains why AI ready health data is the foundation for safe, reliable, and transparent AI. Read the full blog post here.

Push to Regulate AI in Healthcare Gains Steam in States
States ramped up efforts to regulate artificial intelligence in healthcare this year, moving from exploratory debates to concrete legislation with lawmakers in 46 states introduced more than 250 bills addressing AI’s role in healthcare, according to Pluribus News.

Hospitals in Disadvantaged Areas Lag in Telehealth, HIE Adoption
Though the adoption of telehealth and health information exchange, or HIE, functionalities has increased over time, hospitals in more socioeconomically disadvantaged areas are still less likely to adopt these technologies than their counterparts, recent research reveals, according to xtelligent Virtual Healthcare.

UnitedHealthcare, Humana, Aetna Scale Back Medicare Advantage Plans for 2026
UnitedHealthcare, Humana and Aetna all reduced the number of states and counties they serve for 2026, following through on promises to trim underperforming geographies to try to recover flagging margins, according to Healthcare Dive.

New York’s SHIN-NY Pilots Statewide Alerts to Advance Interoperability
The Statewide Health Information Network for New York is piloting a service that delivers real-time notifications for emergency visits, hospital admissions, transfers and discharges across every region of the state, according to xtelligent Health IT and EHR.

California Bill Eliminating ‘Redundant’ Prior Authorization Barriers Signed into Law
California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed a bill into law allowing the state’s Department of Managed Health Care to waive prior authorizations for services or prescriptions that payers approve at least 90% of the time, according to Becker’s Payer Issues.