Utah lets an AI app write first-time acne prescriptions and widens its AI health pilots
On October 5, 2026, Utah's Office of Artificial Intelligence Policy approved a one-year pilot in which Nolla Health's app scans a patient's face, scores acne severity, and prescribes from a list of eight topical treatments without a clinician writing the prescription. It is limited to adults with mild-to-moderate acne; the state waived its rule that a prescriber be a licensed physician for this narrow case. Physicians review the first 100 prescriptions before they go to a pharmacy and the next 400 weekly after the fact, then a sample of at least 10% each month, with a reviewer appointed by the Utah Medical Licensing Board. The same day the office approved two more company pilots, Expect Fitness for AI-supported postpartum physical therapy and August AI for prescription refills, and signed master agreements with Intermountain Health and University of Utah Health covering data privacy, AI governance and reporting so both systems can test AI tools under the sandbox.
Why it's notable: Nolla says it is the first program in the US to let AI issue initial prescriptions rather than renewals, a step beyond Utah's January refill pilot, and the master agreements bring Intermountain Health and University of Utah Health into the same sandbox.