US Public Health Agencies to Test OpenAI and Anthropic AI Models

Public health departments across the United States will test generative AI tools under a new programme involving the Coalition for Health AI (CHAI), OpenAI, Anthropic, and Accenture.

The PULSE Program

The Public Health Use Case and Learning Scaling Engine (PULSE) will support trials in 10 state, local, tribal, or territorial jurisdictions. The programme is designed to produce implementation guidance for public health agencies considering similar AI deployments.

What's Being Provided

• 10 enterprise licences donated by OpenAI and Anthropic
• Capacity for up to 2,000 public health practitioners
• Accenture overseeing participant onboarding and playbook development
• Implementation playbooks expected in 2027

Why Public Health?

"Public health teams are being asked to do more with less, and AI can help — as long as it's brought in with care and the right guardrails," said Elizabeth Kelly, Anthropic's head of beneficial deployments.

The programme will give practitioners access to enterprise AI products with privacy, governance, and responsible-use measures incorporated from the start.

The Governance Angle

PULSE is part of CHAI's broader work on governance standards for healthcare AI. In May, the organization announced plans to develop guidance covering eight governance areas through workshops involving over 150 healthcare AI representatives.

CHAI has not yet identified the specific products, model versions, or configurations that will be used, or explained how the two providers will be assigned across the pilots.

Timeline

• Autumn 2026: Pilots begin
• 2027: Playbooks released for other public health agencies

Key takeaway: Government adoption of AI is moving from policy discussions to real-world deployment. Public health is becoming an important testbed for responsible AI at scale — and the playbooks developed here will influence adoption patterns across the public sector.