ChatGPT unveils new health tool for doctors

OpenAI just announced a suite of new products designed for health care professionals that will roll out to leading medical institutions on Thursday, a company spokesperson told Axios.Why it matters: While over 40 million users already use ChatGPT for health information daily, providers using the tab must be careful to ensure the sometimes hallucinatory chatbot gives professionals accurate advice and maintains patient privacy laws. How it works: ChatGPT for Healthcare is powered by GPT‑5 models that OpenAI says were built for healthcare and evaluated through physician-led testing across benchmarks, including HealthBench⁠ and GDPval⁠.Physicians will also be able to review patient data, with options for "customer-managed encryption keys" to remain HIPAA compliant.The models include peer-reviewed research studies, public health guidance, and clinical guidelines with clear citations including titles, journals, and publication dates to support quick source-checking, according to OpenAI's blog post.Between the lines: OpenAI claims that their new products will meet providers' HIPAA compliance requirements.The tools also include the OpenAI API, which means medical institutions can integrate the chatbot with their current systems. OpenAI says that thousands of organizations have already configured their API to support HIPAA-compliant use.What they're saying: "Healthcare is under unprecedented strain," OpenAI wrote in a blog post announcing the launch."Demand is rising, clinicians are overwhelmed by administrative work, and critical medical knowledge is fragmented across countless sources.""At the same time, AI adoption in healthcare is gaining momentum, driven by its potential to help address these challenges.""Advances in models have significantly improved⁠ AI's ability to support real-world clinical and administrative work, like helping clinicians personalize care using the latest evidence."Zoom in: Providers such as AdventHealth, HCA Healthcare, Boston Children's Hospital, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, and Stanford Medicine Children's Health have already started rolling out ChatGPT for Healthcare. By the numbers: Roughly 66% of physicians were already using AI in their practice in 2024, according to a study of 1,183 physicians surveyed by the American Medical Association⁠ in 2025.That's nearly double the 38% of physicians who were using AI in 2023.Plus, 68% of physicians surveyed said they recognized AI's advantages in easing patient care in 2024, up from 63% the year prior.Zoom out: OpenAI is pitching its products as a way to reduce administrative burden so health care workers can spend more time with patients.But with the ongoing nationwide health care worker shortage and more doctors and nurses fleeing the field, the tool will have to bring real efficiency in order to make the lives of overworked staff any easier.Our thought bubble: Or it could be used by insurance companies and medical institutions to cut cost corners in even more places.Go deeper: OpenAI's new ChatGPT Health feature draws mixed reactions