A new federal pilot program, the Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction (WISeR) model, is putting AI in charge of Medicare prior authorizations and it’s already raising concerns, including reported delays at the University of Washington Medical System. Approvals that once took about two weeks are now taking four to eight weeks, and in some cases longer. Hospitals report that denials frequently don’t align with clinical criteria and often come with no clear explanation. When technology starts sitting between patients and their care, the question isn’t just about efficiency anymore. It’s about responsibility. This is a reminder that bringing AI into healthcare isn’t just a technical shift. It’s an ethical one. Read more here.