The Trump administration is launching a pilot program in six states that will allow artificial intelligence to help decide whether elderly Americans can receive certain medical procedures under traditional Medicare. The move has been likened by critics to the creation of “AI death panels,” with experts and advocates warning it risks importing the most unpopular practices of private insurance into the federal health program.

The pilot, officially named the Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction Model, is scheduled to begin in January and last six years. It will run in Arizona, New Jersey, Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, and Washington. Under the program, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will hire private companies to use A.I. tools to make “prior authorization” decisions—determinations about whether Medicare will pay for particular procedures.

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