In Utah, AI Can Write Prescriptions Without Doctor Approval
· AI Applications · Cem Koyluoglu
Utah approved the launch of a health system that can write the first prescriptions for acne without each prescription needing prior approval by a doctor. This step,...
TL;DR Utah has approved a new health‑tech system that can issue acne prescriptions without prior doctor approval, testing autonomous medical decision‑making. Developed by Nolla Health, the system uses patient data and facial scans to select from a limited set of doctor‑approved treatments, with staged rollout and physician oversight. The pilot, available via the Nolla Derm app, is limited to adults in Utah and includes monitoring and monthly reviews.
Key Highlights • Utah approves autonomous acne prescription system by Nolla Health, allowing first prescriptions without prior doctor approval. • The system uses facial scans and patient data, but only selects from a short list of doctor‑approved topical treatments. • Staged rollout: first 100 patients reviewed by doctors, next 500 prescriptions written autonomously with daily physician review, final stage includes weekly retrospective audits. • Clinician agreement with the system’s suggestions exceeds 96 % in real‑world cases, mainly involving dosage adjustments. • The Nolla Derm app charges a $4.99 monthly fee, tracks daily skin scans, and offers home delivery or pharmacy pickup of prescriptions.
Utah has approved a new health‑tech system that can issue the first acne prescriptions without a prior doctor’s approval, marking a significant test of autonomous medical decision‑making in the United States.
Developed by New York‑based Nolla Health, the system selects treatments from a limited set of doctor‑approved options using patient data and facial scans. It cannot generate its own treatment plans; if it cannot confidently choose a therapy, the case is automatically handed to a licensed physician.
The rollout of autonomy will occur in stages. For the first 100 patients, every prescription will be reviewed by a doctor. In the next phase, covering 500 patients, the system will write prescriptions autonomously, with a physician reviewing the output each day. In the final stage, doctors will conduct a weekly retrospective audit of sample prescriptions.
The pilot is available through the Nolla Derm app to adults aged 18 and older who reside in Utah. Patients complete a 10‑ to 15‑minute survey and undergo a facial scan before the system generates a treatment plan and prescription in a matter of minutes.
The program was created in partnership with the Utah Office of Artificial Intelligence Policy as part of the state’s regulatory framework for testing new AI applications. Regulators describe the pilot as a controlled study of a technology that can assess acne and write new prescriptions without prior human review.
Unlike conventional telehealth services, which typically collect symptoms and then rely on a clinician to make the final prescription decision, Nolla’s system is designed to make that decision within predefined limits.
Nolla says the technology combines multimodal machine‑learning models, including vision‑transformer architectures, with patient‑provided data. The broader system has been trained on more than three million labeled clinical cases.
For the acne pilot, however, the system is restricted to a short list of doctor‑approved topical treatments and predefined treatment protocols. Chief Medical Officer Dr. Zaid Fadul explained, “AI cannot improvise. It can only choose from a short list of doctor‑approved topical treatments.” He added, “When a patient goes beyond these limits, the system stops and refers the patient to a doctor.”
Nolla reports that licensed clinicians agreed with the system’s treatment suggestions in more than 96 % of real‑world cases, with disagreements typically involving dosage adjustments rather than entirely different therapies. This performance figure was provided by Nolla and was not independently verified.
After receiving a prescription, patients may opt for home delivery or pharmacy pickup. The app tracks daily skin scans to monitor progress, and treatment plans are reviewed monthly based on patient responses. If additional support is needed, patients can contact a licensed doctor directly.
The service carries a monthly fee of $4.99. Nolla notes that its dermatology app has been downloaded over 175,000 times across 44 states, but autonomous prescription writing is currently limited to eligible adults in Utah.
Source: https://interestingengineering.com/ai-robotics/utah-autonomous-acne-prescriptions