New York, September 23, 2026 – As artificial intelligence rapidly becomes part of healthcare, new guidance from Health Care Without Harm and its U.S. and Canada network of hospitals and health systems, Practice Greenhealth, is helping U.S. healthcare organizations use their purchasing power to address the environmental and health impacts associated with AI.
The U.S. Artificial Intelligence Procurement Guide is designed to help healthcare organizations identify preferred AI vendors and encourage companies to become better stewards of the environment. AI use can have health and environmental impacts associated with air pollution, energy disruptions, electricity prices, water availability and pollution, noise, waste, and community displacement.
“Health systems are spending billions of dollars annually on technology. Imagine if healthcare organizations began saying together: If you want our business, show us how our AI is powered. Show us how efficient your data centers are with energy and water. Show us that communities aren't being asked to trade clean air for computing power. One health system asking those questions probably won’t make a difference - but thousands of hospitals asking them becomes a powerful market signal,” said Emily Bancroft, Health Care Without Harm CEO.
The Guide asks 10 key questions about the environmental impacts associated with an AI vendor’s company, models, and data centers. The questions focus on quantifiable environmental metrics tied to health risks, including energy and water efficiency, the use of onsite fossil fuel generation such as polluting diesel generators, and community complaints on issues like noise, air, and water pollution.
For ease of implementation, the Guide comes with an excel that scores vendor responses on the environmental disclosure questions.
Vendors are encouraged to submit complete data from day one, but can score 25% for committing to provide data within 12 months the first time they respond to the questions. This recognizes that many vendors may not yet have complete information about third-party AI infrastructure, including data centers. After the first year, commitments no longer receive points and vendors must provide the requested data.
Healthcare organizations can use the resource when selecting new AI products and services or when requesting information from existing vendors. By consistently asking technology companies about AI’s environmental impacts, healthcare organizations can use their market power to make environmental accountability the norm among leading healthcare AI developers, helping drive the sector toward safer, more sustainable practices.
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About Practice Greenhealth
Practice Greenhealth is the leading membership organization for climate-smart healthcare in the United States and Canada. It brings together health systems and empower the professionals within them with the solutions, data, and peer networks needed to advance sustainable operations and build resilient communities.
About Health Care Without Harm
Health Care Without Harm is an international organization mobilizing the health sector to reduce its environmental footprint and drive systemic climate action. Operating as a global federation, Health Care Without Harm mobilizes healthcare organizations, health systems, staff, and health professionals through dedicated regional networks and campaigns - collaborating with strategic partners worldwide to drive hospital transformation, national policy advocacy, and lasting planetary impact.
Media contact:
Mariana Abdalla
Associate Director of External Affairs
Health Care Without Harm
mabdalla@hcwh.org
+ 55 21 99823 5563