RFK Jr. promotes AI nurses as a solution to the rural health care crisis

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an environmental lawyer, has spent his career spreading health misinformation and conspiracy theories. Some of his most popular (often baseless and debunked) claims include that vaccines cause autism; Wi-Fi causes cancer and "leaky brain"; school shootings are attributable to antidepressants; chemicals in water can lead to children becoming transgender; and drinking raw milk is advisable.

His views on these issues and others have fostered great concern among the healthcare community, especially in the time since his nomination to lead the Department of Health and Human Services. In this role, Kennedy would oversee programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act, public health response to epidemics, and approval of pharmaceutical drugs, vaccines, and medical supplies.

Kennedy promises to bring an overdue focus to American health problems through his “Make America Healthy Again” agenda, which targets frustrations with the health-care system, reliance on processed food, increase in chronic disease, and decline in life expectancy.

Kennedy has recently weighed in on the rural health care crisis. When asked during his January 29, 2025 confirmation hearing how he would address health care workforce shortages in rural communities and frontier areas, Kennedy replied that rural hospitals was one of the most unifying topics among lawmakers, and that President Trump had asked him to address the crisis with AI and telemedicine.

Kennedy told the Senate Committee on Finance that the Cleveland Clinic:

[H]as developed an AI nurse that you cannot distinguish from a human being that has diagnosed as good as any doctor. And we can provide concierge care [to] every American in this country, even through the remote parts of Wyoming, Montana, Alaska, etc.

It is true that rural hospitals and clinics are in dire need of government support. (Read more about the rural health care crisis here and here.)

As of 2023, one third of all rural hospitals in the country were at risk of closing because of financial constraints. Further, public health is expected to lose about 57% of its workforce by 2025, with most of the decline attributed to local services such as rural county offices, clinics, agencies, and services. This situation is worsened by a “rural mortality penalty” among rural residents, as consistently revealed by research.

During his first confirmation hearing, Kennedy attempted to address these concerns and emphasized that rural hospitals not only provide important health care for residents, but they also represent important economic opportunities.

However, Kennedy failed to address the most important action the federal government could take to stabilize rural hospitals: expand Medicaid. (Read more about the need for the expansion of Medicaid here.) 

In an MSNBC article, author Paul Waldman explained:

Most of the health care problems rural people face — from closing hospitals to a lack of clinics to a shortage of doctors and nurses — happen precisely because of the limitations of the free market. It’s just not as profitable to sell health care in places with small, often poorer populations spread out over large areas. These problems can only be solved by government intervention and assistance, whether it’s by paying for people’s coverage so hospitals can stay afloat or incentivizing doctors to move to rural areas.

Unfortunately, rural Americans continue to support and elect Republicans, despite their repeated attempts to cut vital programing and confirm unqualified candidates such as Kennedy to run important agencies. If confirmed, it will certainly be interesting to see whether Kennedy implements AI and telemedicine within rural health care systems, and whether the technological advance improves rural health outcomes.