Oakland Post: The Biases We Don’t See — Preventing AI-Driven Inequality in Health Care

February 2026

In this commentary piece, OB/GYN and California State Senator Dr. Akilah Weber Pierson explains the impact of racially biased algorithms on Black patient health, and describes pending legislation that she has authored, Senate Bill (SB) 503.  Designed to keep potentially harmful algorithms from being absorbed into evolving healthcare practices via AI development, “This bill aims to regulate the use of artificial intelligence in healthcare by requiring developers and users of AI systems to identify, mitigate, and monitor biased impacts in their outputs to reduce racial and other disparities in clinical decision-making and patient care.”