Twelve nurses from Montefiore Hospital in the Bronx were laid off on Sunday and replaced with AI-powered software, according to the New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA).

The layoffs affect utilization review nurses who review patient charts to secure insurance approval for physician-ordered care.

Medical unions warn that AI could replace clinical judgment, causing complex cases, diagnoses, or surgeries to be denied.

The news comes in the wake of a 41-day nurses strike across several hospitals in New York City in January. New contracts written after the strikes included safeguards against AI.

Layoffs followed agreement to protect worker’s rights against AI

When Marilyn Shuler, a nurse with almost 40 years of experience, returned to work in February after the strike, she told The Guardian that their workflow had changed without explanation.

After notifying the NYSNA, the union sent an email to management about the changes.

Shuler said they received no response until 28 May, when all 12 nurses in her department received 45-day notices that they would be laid off.

The NYSNA has been campaigning to stop the layoffs, keep a licensed nurse on the final review and use AI as a support rather than as a role replacement.

“They need to sit down with the nurses who actually do this work,” the union urged in a post published earlier this month, titled: “The Bronx needs real nurses not AI!”

“We are outraged about these layoffs because these dedicated nurses are being replaced by AI. This is a violation of the contract that we recently won by going on strike.

Shaiju Kalathil, NYSNA executive committee member and registered nurse

Datavant: privacy and cybersecurity concerns

The union has also expressed concern over the AI provider the hospital has selected.

Datavant, a private-equity-backed technology company, has two partnerships with Palantir, the company ICE uses to surveil and deport immigrants.

The union pointed out that the Arizona-based health IT company, also has a history of data breaches and was the subject of a class action lawsuit after a data breach in May 2024 that compromised the personal data of around 50,000 patients. Datavant Group paid $900,000 to resolve the lawsuit.

New York’s hospitals accused of “secret AI rollout”

Elsewhere, there’s been criticism from doctors about the speed and secrecy at which AI has been rolled out in the state.

Medical influencer Michael Bass, M.D. wrote in a LinkedIn post complaining that New York hospitals “quietly rolled out new AI tools without notifying nurses.”

According to Dr Bass there was no training, no safety protocol, and no disclosure about what the technology would actually do.

He warned that this unregulated use of AI was dangerous for patients and that the details were alarming.

“One ICU nurse reported vendors attaching devices directly to patients’ skulls without supervision."

Dr Michael Bass, MD, on LinkedIn

“When executives move faster than the clinical reality can absorb, patients become the beta testers. AI isn’t dangerous on its own, but unchecked AI deployment absolutely is," Bass added.

As Kalathil asserts “It should also concern every practitioner and patient who cares about the future of healthcare and the quality of care they receive.”

In a statement a Montefiore spokesperson said the claims by NYSNA were “ inaccurate and misleading."

They added that the hospital says it is "always investing in new technology to ensure the best care and outcomes for our patients."

No allegation of wrongdoing has been proven, and the dispute is now moving through the contract grievance process.