OpenAI has unveiled ChatGPT Health, a dedicated feature allowing users to connect medical records and wellness apps to the AI chatbot. The company reports that 230 million people ask health-related questions on ChatGPT weekly—over 5% of all global messages on the platform. Privacy experts have raised significant concerns about HIPAA protections and potential data misuse.
What ChatGPT Health Offers
The new feature creates a dedicated hub for health conversations. Users can upload medical records including lab results, visit summaries, and clinical history. When asking questions, ChatGPT responses will be “grounded in the information you’ve connected.”
Integration partners include:
- b.well: Health data connectivity platform
- Apple Health: Fitness and wellness tracking
- MyFitnessPal: Nutrition and exercise data
- Weight Watchers: Diet and weight management
OpenAI emphasizes that ChatGPT Health is not intended for diagnosis or treatment. The feature builds on existing privacy controls with “purpose-built encryption and isolation to keep health conversations protected and compartmentalized.”
Privacy Expert Warnings
Despite OpenAI’s assurances, privacy advocates have raised serious concerns about sharing medical data with an AI company.
“Individuals sharing their electronic medical records with ChatGPT Health would remove the HIPAA protection from those records, which is dangerous. The U.S. has no comprehensive privacy law, which creates real risks.”
— Sara Geoghegan, Electronic Privacy Information Center
Andrew Crawford from the Center for Democracy & Technology pointed to OpenAI’s exploration of advertising as a business model: “While OpenAI says it won’t use information shared with ChatGPT Health in other chats, it has also indicated it is exploring advertising. We need more clarity ensuring users that their health data will not be used to profile them for advertisers.”
Crawford also raised concerns about government access: “If law enforcement requests OpenAI turn over a user’s reproductive health data for an investigation, will OpenAI comply?”
Medical Professional Perspectives
Healthcare experts offer more nuanced views on the feature’s utility.
“This is a significant step forward from patients showing up with Google searches. But patients must understand that health data shared with ChatGPT is not protected by HIPAA, unlike in conversations with physicians.”
— Dr. David Liebovitz, Northwestern University
Dr. Adam Rodman from Harvard Medical School noted the feature “really focused on using it to help understand your health better—not using it as a replacement, but as a way to enhance.” He added: “I think this more reflects what health care looks like in 2026 rather than any super novel feature.”
Geographic Restrictions
The medical record integration function is only available in the United States. Other ChatGPT Health features are available globally except for users in:
- European Union
- Switzerland
- United Kingdom
These regions have strict digital privacy laws including GDPR that likely conflict with the feature’s data collection practices.
Data Protection Commitments
OpenAI has made specific commitments regarding ChatGPT Health data:
- Conversations will not be used to train foundation models
- Health data is encrypted and isolated from other chats
- Purpose-built compartmentalization protects sensitive information
However, critics note that “ChatGPT is only bound by its own disclosures and promises” and “can change the terms of its service at any time” without regulatory oversight.
Implications for Digital Health
The launch reflects growing consumer comfort with AI for health information, but also highlights the tension between convenience and privacy-first approaches in digital services. With 40 million daily health queries already flowing through ChatGPT, OpenAI is formalizing a use case that users have adopted organically—while taking on significant responsibility for sensitive medical data.