Utah has approved a pilot that lets AI from Nolla Health issue initial acne prescriptions without a physician visit. The company says it is the first organization in the U.S. cleared for AI to write new prescriptions.
The state has already been experimenting with AI in prescribing. Utah lets AI from Doctronic renew prescriptions for nearly 200 common chronic-condition medications and has OK’d a similar refill pilot for Legion Health’s AI covering psychiatric drugs.
Nolla’s program was developed with the Utah Office of Artificial Intelligence Policy and launched Oct. 5 through the Nolla Derm app. It is open to Utah residents 18 and older. Patients pay $4.99 a month, complete a 10- to 15-minute intake questionnaire and a face scan, and get a treatment plan and prescription within minutes.
The AI cannot improvise. It can only choose from a short list of physician-approved topical treatments. If it can’t confidently pick one, the patient goes to a licensed physician. Nolla also worked with the Utah Medical Licensing Board before launch.
Physician oversight decreases over three stages. For the first 100 patients, a physician approves every AI-generated prescription. Through the first 500 patients, the AI prescribes on its own and a physician reviews its decisions daily after the fact. After that, a physician reviews a sample of prescriptions each week.
According to Nolla, clinicians agreed with the AI’s treatment recommendations in more than 96% of real-world cases. The remaining cases needed only minor changes, such as adjusting topical strength.
Nolla is targeting an access gap. The company says only about 10% of Utahns with acne ever see a dermatologist, and the state’s average wait for an appointment is 61 days.
The company said its app has been downloaded by more than 175,000 people across 44 states.
