A physician contract review by AI may seem like a fast and inexpensive way to evaluate your employment agreement. Some physicians are now using AI tools to review contracts before deciding whether to sign.
However, a physician contract review by AI can create significant risk. While the bot may provide summaries or general feedback, they often fail to identify the provisions that matter most to a physician’s compensation, mobility, and long-term career.
What a Physician Contract Review by AI Can and Cannot Do
A physician contract review by AI can be useful to give you a summary of contract provisions, and may attempt to explain basic legal terminology. These reviews may also highlight obvious red-flags.
However, a physician contract review by AI is generally not able to compare the offered compensation to reliable market benchmarks such as MGMA benchmarks. This issue isn’t confined to salary or the physician sign-on bonus. Without access to wRVU benchmarks, a bot isn’t likely to find common wRVU compensation traps for physicians.
The AI bot will usually not be able to interpret physician-specific deal structures such as private equity or management service organization (“MSO”) arrangements. The bot will not be able to discern if the overall tenor of the agreement is physician-friendly. Physician employment agreements are not just collections of clauses – they are negotiated agreements with financial and legal consequences. A bot obviously can’t tailor advice based on understanding your specific situation compared to the healthcare market.
Perhaps the most worrisome aspect of relying on an AI bot is the lack of accountability. Unlike a law firm, an AI bot does not create an attorney-client privilege. Your contract information can become part of the AI’s database. The bot does not have a legally mandated duty of confidentiality, or an obligation to act in your best interest. If things go wrong or you have specific questions, who can you talk to?
Conclusion: Physician Contract Review by AI Should Not be the Final Step
Although an AI review of a physician employment agreement may seem like a good first step, tread with caution. I have had several physicians approach me with their AI reviews to be “helpful.” Some of these reviews were downright scary in the recommendations. One solemnly declared that physicians should receive severance agreements (I agree, but other than paying a physician during a termination notice period, you almost never see severance for clinicians). Another declared that restrictive covenants for physicians are “illegal in many states.” This is true, but restrictive covenants were quite legal in the state where that employer was located.
I think it depends on how comfortable you are with AI in general. If you mom gets sick and you advise her to check WebMD instead of seeing a physician, perhaps an AI physician employment contract review is right for you.
If you’re considering a physician employment contract and want experienced legal guidance before signing, you can start your review here. We can also provide a free consultation to talk about how we can help.
