MedShield Act of 2024

• Authority: United States Congress
• Parent authority: Federal government
• Jurisdiction: United States
• Collections: U.S. federal laws
• Most recent activity: Defunct
• Most recent activity date: 2025-01-03

Risk subdomain coverage

Minimal coverage — Brief mention but no specific mitigations, recommendations or governance measures relating to the risk subdomain are described.

• AI system security vulnerabilities
• Governance failure

All other risk subdomains had no coverage in this document.

Risk Coverage Summary

The document has minimal coverage of AI risk domains, with limited focus on AI system security (2.2) through pathogen surveillance systems, and implicit coverage of governance structures (6.5) through federal agency coordination. The document primarily focuses on AI applications for pandemic preparedness rather than AI risks and harms.

Sector coverage

Good coverage — Comprehensive governance measures or mitigations with clear procedures relating to the sector are explicitly described.

• Scientific Research & Development Services
• Health Care & Social Assistance
• Public Administration (excl. National Security)

Minimal coverage — Brief mention but no specific mitigations, recommendations or governance measures relating to the sector are described.

• Agriculture, Mining, Construction & Manufacturing
• Information
• National Security

All other sectors had no coverage in this document.

Sectors Summary

The document primarily governs AI use in the Health Care and Social Assistance sector through pandemic preparedness and response programs. It also has significant coverage of Public Administration (federal agencies coordinating the program) and Scientific Research and Development Services (vaccine and therapeutic development). The Information sector is implicitly covered through AI system development and deployment.

Legislative Status

Hard Law

Legislative Status Summary

This is a binding legislative act from the United States Congress with mandatory implementation requirements, specific appropriations, and enforcement through federal agency authority.

Actors

Proposer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: United States Congress; Senate; House of Representatives
• Summary: The document is a Congressional bill enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives, as indicated in the opening legislative language.

Target

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor, AI_Developer, AI_Deployer
• Entities: Secretary of Health and Human Services; Department of Health and Human Services; Federal agencies; private sector entities; allies and partners
• Summary: The primary target is the Secretary of Health and Human Services who must implement the program. The program also applies to federal agencies and private sector entities participating in the public-private ecosystem for pandemic preparedness.

Enforcer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Secretary of Health and Human Services; Department of Health and Human Services; Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; Committee on Energy and Commerce; Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives
• Summary: The Secretary of Health and Human Services has primary implementation authority, with Congressional committees providing oversight through mandatory reporting requirements.

Monitor

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions; Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; Committee on Energy and Commerce; Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives; Secretary of Health and Human Services
• Summary: Congressional committees monitor implementation through mandatory reporting within 180 days. The Secretary also has ongoing monitoring responsibilities for the continuous operation of the program.

AI Lifecycle Stages

Lifecycle stages covered by the documents, as defined in the OECD Framework for the Classification of AI Systems

• Plan and Design
• Collect and Process Data
• Build and Use Model
• Deploy
• Operate and Monitor

AI Lifecycle Summary

The document covers multiple AI lifecycle stages with primary focus on deployment and operational monitoring of AI systems for pandemic preparedness. It addresses planning and design through program development requirements, building and using models for pathogen surveillance and vaccine development, and emphasizes continuous operation and monitoring of AI-enabled systems.

Technical Scope

Terms relating to technical scope that are mentioned or implicitly referenced in the document

• AI Models
• AI Systems

Technical Scope Summary

The document explicitly mentions artificial intelligence and AI-enabled systems multiple times, focusing on AI applications for pandemic preparedness including surveillance, vaccine development, and therapeutic treatments. It does not specify particular AI model types, compute thresholds, or distinguish between general purpose and task-specific AI.