HHS Launches Sweeping AI Strategy as FDA Rolls Out Agentic AI Tools for Workforce
Federal agencies are making a new push to deploy artificial intelligence (AI) tools to their workforces.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) just released its department-wide AI strategy. The goal is to increase AI adoption across HHS and its subagencies, and to improve efficiency and cut costs. Known as OneHHS, the plan is designed to use AI to streamline workflows, improve cybersecurity, and modernize the nation’s public health systems.
"AI has the potential to revolutionize health care and human services, and HHS is leading that paradigm shift," said Deputy HHS Secretary Jim O'Neill.
“We are training our workforce to use AI at all levels, to update workflows, and automate tedious tasks. We will better deliver health care and human services through this AI-equipped workforce,” wrote HHS acting Chief AI Officer Clark Minor in the intro letter to the strategy.
The strategy is based on five pillars that will be revised and updated as necessary:
Ensure Governance and Risk Management for Public Trust
Design Infrastructure and Platforms for User Needs
Promote Workforce Development and Burden Reduction for Efficiency
Foster Health Research and Reproducibility through Gold‑Standard Science
Enable Care and Public Health Delivery Modernization for Better Outcomes
HHS Deploys Claude as FDA Moves into Agentic AI
Meanwhile, HHS announced that Anthropic’s popular AI chatbot Claude has been deployed to the HHS workforce, months after it rolled out OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which is available to workers across the federal government as part of a deal between OpenAI and the General Services Administration (GSA).
In a memo, Deputy Secretary O’Neill urged workers to use either AI tool or “ask both and compare the responses.”
And the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it’s deploying agentic AI capabilities for all employees.
Agentic AI refers to advanced artificial intelligence systems designed to achieve specific goals by planning, reasoning, and executing multi-step actions.
The FDA says the tools will help with complex tasks such as drug reviews, post-market surveillance, compliance, and administrative tasks.
Use by the FDA workforce is voluntary.
