As Florida lawmakers dig into issues involving artificial intelligence, state Insurance Commissioner Michael Yaworsky wants to make sure regulators can properly oversee AI use by insurance companies.
“Responsible AI governance is crucial,” Yaworsky told the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee last week. “I’m not an opponent of AI, but I do think it needs to be responsibly deployed. There are some companies that I think are doing it in a much more responsible manner than others.”
Rep. Hillary Cassel, R-Dania Beach, filed a bill (HB 527) on Monday that seeks to ensure humans make decisions about denials of insurance claims. Cassel’s bill is identical to a measure (SB 202) filed in October by Sen. Jennifer Bradley, R-Fleming Island.
Yaworsky did not go that far last week when outlining his ideas to the Senate committee. He said he wants to address issues such as disclosure when artificial intelligence is being used, auditing and understanding that companies have a “human in the loop that knows what that system is doing, has expertise on that.”
“This is a policy decision for the Legislature,” Yaworsky said. “We don’t view it as a necessary benefit to eliminate the use of AI. That’s a legislative decision to make. But we do want to provide a path where, if it is being used, it is being used responsibly, known to the regulator.”
With the explosive growth of artificial intelligence, lawmakers have started looking at the technology in subject areas such as insurance and education. House Speaker Daniel Perez, R-Miami, sent a memorandum last week to lawmakers saying the week of Dec. 8 to Dec. 12 will be “Artificial Intelligence Week” in the House, with subcommittees focusing on AI issues in the areas they oversee.
“We all recognize that AI may open new economic vistas,” Perez wrote in the memo. “At the same time, we see stories about how AI can be abused, have adverse effects on education, or harm emotionally vulnerable users. As policy makers, our understanding of the issue is complicated by the rapid emergence of this complex technology, and, as we’ve seen with social media, short-term legislative choices can have serious long-term consequences.”
The House Insurance & Banking Subcommittee in October held a panel discussion about artificial intelligence, with a panel of insurance and tech officials saying insurers are using artificial intelligence in a variety of ways, including in claims handling. The panel members also tried to dispel concerns that the technology could be misused.
Paul Martin, vice president of state affairs for the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies, told the House panel that AI is a “tool” whose use is governed by already-existing insurance laws.
“If a practice is prohibited for a human to do on behalf of an insurance company, it is prohibited for AI to do,” Martin said. “Artificial intelligence is not an end run for the insurance companies around a state’s statutes or its regulations.”
But during his appearance last week at the Senate committee, Yaworsky said regulators recently flagged a filing by a company that had used an “off-the-shelf solution.”
“I won’t name the company, but a while back, from a health company we got a filing, and our actuaries, as they looked it, they were smart enough to know that AI was involved,” Yaworsky said. “When we asked the company, ‘Well, what does this AI mechanism do?’ Their response was, ‘We don’t know.’”
