4 of the 7 practice problems on Kent Applied's map need no patient data
Problems that cost US physician, dental and other practices money or carry risk, by whether an AI tool for them needs patient data. Number of problems, Kent Applied analysis, October 2026.
Show the numbers as a table
| Category | Value | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Needs no patient data | 4 | Payer rates; credentialing and insurer directories; getting found online; replies to online reviews |
| Needs patient data from the start | 2 | Prior authorization; claim denials |
| No AI tool advised | 1 | Hiring medical assistants and hygienists |
About the data
- Sources
- Kent Applied, Where AI tools fit in healthcare, by kind of organizationFig. 4 and the explorer, Practices: the seven problems, the tools for each and the data each tool reads
- NYC Local Law 144 (opens in a new tab)Department of Consumer and Worker Protection page on automated employment decision tools: the yearly bias audit
- California Civil Rights Council (opens in a new tab)Rulemaking actions: employment regulations on automated-decision systems, effective October 1, 2025
- Method
- The problems and how each is classified are Kent Applied's own. Practices here are physician groups, dental offices, behavioral health and therapy practices and other small clinical businesses, and Kent Applied picked seven problems for them by its judgment of the money or risk at stake. A problem counts as needing no patient data when every tool advised for it reads only contracts, policies, staff records, public data, websites or summary reports, with no patient identifiers. It needs patient data from the start when the first useful step reads patient records or claims. On the full map of 44 problems, a fourth group needs patient data for only part of the work; no practice problem falls in it. For hiring, no AI tool is advised: AI that screens job applicants needs a bias audit within the past year in New York City and falls under California's rules on automated decision systems.
- Published
Free to share and embed with credit to Kent Applied (CC BY 4.0). The source data keeps its own terms.
Related charts
- From research
30 of 44 top healthcare problems need no patient data, in Kent Applied's analysis
Kent Applied, Where AI tools fit in healthcare, by kind of organization; NYC Local Law 144; California Civil Rights Council - From research
Of the 44 problems, 13 are about money and payers and 10 about rules, surveys and audits
Kent Applied, Where AI tools fit in healthcare, by kind of organization - From the blog
Imaging, insurance checks, charting and billing lead dentists' current and planned AI use
ADA Health Policy Institute, The State of the US Dental Economy, 2nd Quarter 2026 Update - From research
Health care and social assistance firms use AI at about the US rate, half the top sector's
US Census Bureau, Business Trends and Outlook Survey (sector estimates); BTOS national estimates; US Census Bureau, Business Trends and Outlook Survey (about the survey); US Census Bureau, 2022 NAICS descriptions
Sources for the figures above: US Census Bureau, Business Trends and Outlook Survey (sector estimates) (opens in a new tab); Business Trends and Outlook Survey, national estimates (opens in a new tab).
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