Californians sue over AI tool that records doctor visits

• 01Californians filed a proposed class-action lawsuit on Wednesday in federal court in San Francisco against Sutter Health and MemorialCare over allegations that an AI transcription tool was used to record patients without their consent.
• 02The plaintiffs received medical care at various Sutter and MemorialCare facilities within the past six months where medical staff used Abridge AI.
• 03According to the complaint, Abridge AI 'captured and processed their confidential physician-patient communications' and plaintiffs 'did not receive clear notice that their medical conversations would be recorded by an artificial intelligence platform, transmitted outside the clinical setting, or processed through third-party systems.'
• 04The complaint states recordings contained 'individually identifiable medical information, including but not limited to medical histories, symptoms, diagnoses, medications, treatment discussions, and other sensitive health disclosures.'
• 05Abridge's software has been deployed across major health care providers including Kaiser Permanente, the Mayo Clinic, Duke Health, and others.
• 06Sutter Health began partnering with Abridge two years ago.
• 07Sutter spokesperson Liz Madison stated: 'We take patient privacy seriously and are committed to protecting the security of our patients' information. Technology used in our clinical settings is carefully evaluated and implemented in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.'
• 08Abridge AI was valued at $5.3 billion as of June 2025.

Californians filed a proposed class-action lawsuit Wednesday against Sutter Health and MemorialCare alleging that the Abridge AI transcription tool recorded patient-physician conversations without patient consent in violation of state and federal law. The complaint states patients did not receive clear notice that their medical conversations would be recorded, transmitted outside clinical settings, or processed through third-party systems, and that recordings contained identifiable health information. Sutter Health said it takes patient privacy seriously and evaluates technology in accordance with applicable laws, while MemorialCare declined to comment on the pending litigation.