Private AI for veterinarians: client records, AI scribes, and state law
The Morse teamPublished 10 min read
Private AI for veterinarians runs on state law, because HIPAA doesn't cover animal records and your state's veterinary practice act does, usually protecting the client as well as the patient. As of November 7, 2026, California bars a licensed vet from disclosing "any information concerning an animal patient receiving veterinary services, the client responsible for the animal patient receiving veterinary services, or the veterinary care provided" without the client's consent or another exception (California Veterinary Medical Board, B&P Code 4857). Vets can use ChatGPT for anything with no client in it. A client's name, address, case notes, X-rays, or controlled-drug entries belong only in a tool your practice has vetted.
This isn't legal or veterinary advice. It's about who can read what you type, not how to treat a patient. On November 7, 2026 we read the AVMA's Principles of Veterinary Medical Ethics and its news coverage of AI, the American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB) white paper on AI, the confidentiality laws of California, Texas, New York, and Florida on each state's own site, HIPAA's definitions and the DEA's record rules on eCFR, two OpenAI help pages, and the privacy pages of four AI scribes: ScribbleVet, Talkatoo, VetRec, and CoVet. The AAVSB earns credit here. Its paper ranks AI uses by risk, names the contract clauses to avoid, and tells vets to read a vendor's terms before signing.
Does HIPAA apply to veterinarians?
No. HIPAA's definitions are written for people. "Health care" means "care, services, or supplies related to the health of an individual," and "individual" means "the person who is the subject of protected health information" (eCFR, 45 CFR 160.103). A dog isn't a person under that rule, so animal records fall outside HIPAA, and no business associate agreement (BAA) is needed for HIPAA's sake.
That doesn't make the record free to share. The client's name, address, phone number, and payment history sit in the same file as the diagnosis, and state law guards them. Some AI vendors for vets advertise HIPAA compliance anyway. VetRec says "Our platform is fully HIPAA compliant" (VetRec), and CoVet's site footer says it "meets global standards for security with HIPAA, GDPR, PIPEDA, SOC 2, and ISO 27001 compliance" (CoVet). Read those as claims about the vendor's security program. The law that protects your clients is your state's practice act.
Can veterinarians use ChatGPT?
Yes, for questions that name no client. "Draft a handout on dental cleanings for a first-time cat owner" or "Explain a fructosamine test in plain English" carries nothing about anyone. A personal ChatGPT account keeps those chats on OpenAI's servers, and on Free, Plus, and Pro "data sharing is enabled by default." You turn it off under Settings > Data controls > Improve the model for everyone (OpenAI). We cover the rest of that setting in does ChatGPT train on your data.
OpenAI's free clinician tier doesn't take vets. As of November 7, 2026, eligible clinicians for ChatGPT for Clinicians "currently include physicians (MD/DO), nurse practitioners (NP), physician assistants (PA), and pharmacists," and sign-up needs an NPI and a license OpenAI can verify (OpenAI). OpenAI says content in it "is not used to train OpenAI's models."
What does your state's practice act say about client information?
Each state writes its own rule, and the four we read reach further than the medical record.
| State | What the law protects | What it says about sharing | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | Information about the animal, "the client responsible," and the care | Only on "written or witnessed verbal authorization by knowing and informed consent of the client," a court order, or the other listed exceptions; violations carry criminal penalties, and a vet "who negligently releases confidential information shall be liable in a civil action" | B&P Code 4857, 2026 edition |
| Texas | "the confidential relationship between the veterinarian and the veterinarian's client" | A vet may not violate it; release needs the client's written authorization or "an appropriate court order or subpoena" | Occupations Code 801.353 |
| New York | "personally identifiable facts, data or information obtained in a professional capacity" | Revealing them "without the prior consent of the patient or client" is unprofessional conduct, a rule that applies to vets through section 29.6 | 8 NYCRR Part 29 |
| Florida | Records, and the patient's medical condition | Records "may not be furnished to, and the medical condition of a patient may not be discussed with, any person other than the client" or the vets treating the patient, without written authorization | Florida Statutes 474.2165 |
None of the four mentions AI, and we found no board guidance in these states saying whether typing a case into a chatbot counts as disclosing it. Florida points to the safe route. It lets records go out for research only when "the information is abstracted in such a way as to protect the identity of the patient and the client." Stripping both identities before you type follows the same idea wherever you practice.
The AVMA's ethics code adds the profession's own rule. The Principles say "The information within veterinary medical records is confidential" and "must not be released except as required or allowed by law, or by client consent," and that records "are the property of the practice and the practice owner" (AVMA). An associate pasting a chart into a personal AI account is using the owner's property as well as the client's confidence.
What do the AVMA and the state boards say about AI?
The AVMA has no AI policy that we could find on November 7, 2026. Its news coverage of an October 2025 panel reports that it "has created a Task Force on Emerging Technologies and Innovation," and quotes a speaker who "urged caution around software that records and transcribes examination room conversations" and warned that "we have to be sure that data isn't being used for something else" (AVMA).
The state boards' association went further. The AAVSB published "Regulatory Considerations of the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Veterinary Medicine" on March 21, 2025 (AAVSB), and California's board put the full paper in its July 2025 meeting materials (California Veterinary Medical Board). It rates "Using AI transcribing device in a closed and secure system" as low risk and "Using AI transcribing device that is connected directly with an open AI system" as high risk. It warns that "Some companies currently include clauses allowing the use or sale of practice data without notifying the practice owner," says "Such agreements should be avoided," and tells licensees to "carefully review the terms of service with the provider." It also says informed consent should be obtained, at a minimum, "when AI assists in writing or summarizing medical records" or "transmits unencrypted/unprotected Client data." The AAVSB writes model rules, not law, so your own board decides what binds you.
Are veterinary AI scribes private?
That depends on the scribe. Their own pages, read on November 7, 2026, differ on training, on retention, and on who else processes the audio.
| Scribe | Training on your recordings | How long recordings stay | AI providers | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ScribbleVet (Kairo Care; acquired by Instinct Science in January 2026) | Privacy policy effective December 9, 2025: "We may also use portions of recordings submitted to the Services by our Clients to train our AI models" | Audio "stored for 90 days before they're automatically deleted"; transcripts "may be stored in your account indefinitely" | Not named | Policy, help center |
| Talkatoo | The policy doesn't say whether Talkatoo trains on them; of OpenAI it says "Your data is not used to improve or train their models" | No period given | Names Google and OpenAI among the third parties it uses "to establish accounts, process payments, and process transcriptions" | Policy |
| VetRec | "There is no training being done with your data" | "custom retention and deletion policies" | Says it "has signed Business Associate Agreements (BAA) with its AI providers"; doesn't name them | Security page |
| CoVet | Policy updated September 1, 2026 doesn't say | "as long as necessary to provide you with the Service" | "AI service providers," not named | Policy |
ScribbleVet's policy also says it handles pet owners' information "as a processor/service provider, on our clients' behalf," so the contract your practice signs governs those recordings more than the public page does (ScribbleVet). Ask for that contract in writing, and ask whether its training clause can be switched off for your practice. Instinct says customers of both companies "will continue using their products as they do today, with no immediate changes" (Instinct). That's no promise about later terms, so check the policy again when they change. A scribe that records the exam also records the client's voice, and we cover what meeting recorders keep in is Otter.ai private.
What can you paste from a patient record into AI?
The clinical question, without the household attached. California's record rule shows how much identity a chart carries. Every record must hold the "Name, address and phone number of the client" and the animal's name, and radiographs and digital images must carry "Client identification" and "Patient identification" in the image or "attached to the digital file" (California Veterinary Medical Board, 16 CCR 2032.3). Uploading an X-ray straight from your imaging system can send the client's name with it. We cover what ChatGPT keeps from uploaded files in what happens to files you upload to ChatGPT.
| What you'd paste | Rule that reaches it | Fine for a general AI tool | Keep in your practice's own systems |
|---|---|---|---|
| SOAP note or exam transcript | State confidentiality law; AVMA Principles 3.7 | Species, age, signs, and the question: "Differentials for a 9-year-old Lab with polyuria?" | The note with the client's name, the pet's name, or the clinic attached |
| Client contact details | California's record rule lists name, address, and phone; New York's "personally identifiable facts" | Nothing | All of it |
| Radiograph or ultrasound file | California requires client and patient ID on or attached to the image | A cropped screenshot with every label and file name removed | The original file and its metadata |
| Controlled-drug log | DEA dispensing records list "the name and address of the person to whom it was dispensed," kept "for at least 2 years" | A general question about logging or wastage | Every log entry |
| Euthanasia consent and notes | State confidentiality law; the form carries the client's signature | "Help me write a gentle aftercare explanation for a family" | The consent form and the family's details |
| Payment history | California's 4855.1, effective January 1, 2026, requires keeping client payment records for three years | How to word a payment plan, with no amounts or names | Invoices, balances, and card numbers |
| Reply to a bad online review | Texas 801.353(d-2) | The review itself, which the client made public, and a calm draft reply | Anything from the chart that the review didn't already say |
The DEA rules are on eCFR (21 CFR 1304.22, 21 CFR 1304.04), and California's payment rule is in the board's 2026 edition of the practice act (California Veterinary Medical Board). Texas lets a vet answer a client's false public post only with "factual information" that "directly refutes the false information," and only if the vet "does not share any personally identifiable information of a client or owner other than the full name" (Texas Occupations Code 801.353). Draft the tone with AI, then add facts from the record yourself, inside those limits. The same habits apply on the human side of the counter, which we cover in private AI for pharmacists.
How Morse keeps a practice's AI questions out of company records
Every tool in this article keeps what you type or record on the company's servers, under terms that can allow training, indefinite transcripts, or providers you never see. Your state's law bars disclosing client information without consent, so keep the client out of the AI. Morse is built so the rest of what you type isn't stored on Morse's servers, and in Private and E2EE, not by any AI host either.
Client names, records, X-rays, and drug logs still belong in your practice's own systems. Morse doesn't claim HIPAA compliance or any certification. It's for the rest of a practice's AI use: differentials for a de-identified case, client handouts, CE study, and the reply to a hard review.
- Private, for case questions and handouts you'd rather no AI host keep. New chats start in Private, on open-weight models like DeepSeek, Kimi, and GLM, plus xAI's Grok. Morse has zero data retention agreements with its inference, search, and other providers, so they keep nothing. Where a provider confirms zero retention on each reply, Morse checks it and refuses a reply that doesn't.
- E2EE, for a hard letter to a grieving client, a complaint, or a case write-up no company should read. Your browser checks the enclave's hardware attestation before anything leaves your device, then encrypts the message so only that enclave can open it. Morse's servers relay text they can't read, and the reply is decrypted only in your browser. The enclaves are run by third-party providers, not by Morse, and the guarantee rests on the enclave hardware and attestation working as designed. E2EE models can't search the web, so look up current drug information in Private.
- Anonymous, to ask GPT, Claude, or Gemini without the provider knowing it's you. Morse's proxy removes your account, email, and IP address and sends the message under Morse's own account. The provider still sees the text and may keep it for a limited time to check for abuse, under its own policy, so strip the client and the pet's name first.
In every mode your chat history is stored in your browser, encrypted, and not on Morse's servers, and opening it takes a key from your device and one from our server at sign-in. Morse doesn't train AI on your chats, sell your data, or show ads. A file you attach goes with the message and is never stored by Morse, and a Temporary chat lives only in memory, which suits a handout you'll paste into your own system. Because we don't store chats, we usually have very little to give authorities. Clearing your browser or deleting your account deletes the chats, and Morse can't recover them, so keep what you need in your records.
Ask a de-identified case question from the Morse home page without an account, or start free with no card. E2EE chats come with Pro, at $19 a month.
Common questions
Do I have to tell clients I'm using an AI scribe in the exam room?
Check your state's rules first. The AAVSB's white paper says that when AI transcribes an exam, "the Client should be notified and allowed to opt out," and suggests signage in the exam room as one way to do it.
Is a pet's name enough to identify a client?
Often, yes. California's record rule lists the animal's name beside the client's name, address, and phone number, and a pet's name with its breed and town can point to one household. Use "a 9-year-old spayed Labrador" instead.
I'm a technician or a practice manager. Do these rules reach me?
The statutes we read speak to the veterinarian, but New York counts a vet's failure to supervise staff as unprofessional conduct, so the practice's AI policy is what binds you day to day. If the practice has none, ask the practice owner before any record goes into an AI tool.
Can I use Morse on a shared clinic computer?
Your Morse chats are stored in that browser, encrypted, and locked when you sign out, so sign out before you step away from the workstation. A copy of the browser's data alone can't be read, and clearing that browser deletes the chats for good.