California moved a step closer to restricting AI chatbots in mental health care after Senate Bill 903 cleared the Assembly Appropriations Committee in a 13-0 vote on Thursday and was ordered to a third reading. No date has been announced for an Assembly floor vote.
Introduced on January 21, the bill would bar AI chatbots from posing as therapists and from making mental health decisions without human oversight.
When the measure was introduced, California State Senator Steve Padilla, the bill’s author, said: "AI algorithms are not fit to take over the job of human therapists, who have skills and training that AI is incapable of replicating. We must act and place guardrails that prevent AI algorithms from being deployed in a way that is potentially harmful to patients."
What SB 903 would do
Also known as the Wellness and Oversight for Psychological Resources Act, SB 903 would limit AI use in psychotherapy to support tasks. It would also prohibit chatbots from presenting themselves as therapists and would require clinician oversight and patient consent.
The bill also includes protections for therapy data. At the same time, it exempts peer support, religious counseling, research, and federally approved medical tools.
Where the bill stands in Sacramento
The California Senate passed SB 903 in May by a 39-0 vote. It later cleared two Assembly policy committees by votes of 17-0 and 14-1.
If the Assembly approves the amended bill, it would return to the Senate for concurrence before going to California Governor Gavin Newsom for signature.
Opponents say clinician requirements could slow access
Not everyone supports the measure. Critics said the requirement for clinician involvement could delay care while counties across California face shortages of behavioral healthcare workers.
Robert Boykin, executive director of the technology industry group TechNet, told the non-profit news outlet CalMatters in a statement: "At a time when every county in California faces a shortage of behavioral healthcare workers, SB 903 still puts a clinician bottleneck in front of the intake and screening tools that help patients reach care faster."
Growing concern over AI and mental health
The bill is advancing as concern builds over the effects of AI in mental health settings.
In June, a survey from the American Psychological Association found that 77% of psychologists had patients who used AI for mental health purposes. Researchers at King’s College London, the Protestant University of Applied Sciences, and the City University of New York also found that chatbots can reinforce delusions through excessive agreement and personalized responses.
The researchers wrote: "The tendency of AI chatbots to agree with user opinions has been likened to social media echo chambers and, in its most extreme form, to an 'echo chamber of one,' where the positive corrective influence of real-life social interactions is absent."