Key points
- 36,461 licensed physicians had a mailing address in the five boroughs on 1 July 2026, 44% of the 82,615 in New York State.3
- Under the SHIELD Act, a business subject to and in compliance with the HIPAA regulations counts as a compliant regulated entity, so the clinic's HIPAA program is the place every AI vendor belongs.5
- New York Penal Law treats a recording as unlawful overhearing only without the consent of at least one party, and a clinician in the room is a party.6
- 47.7% of New Yorkers aged five and over speak a language other than English at home, and 493,448 of them speak Chinese.12
- wai hosts each clinic's records in its own country, under that country's rules. We set this up with your clinic.
Summary
A New York City clinic can run AI notes and front desk replies on the HIPAA program it already keeps, because the SHIELD Act counts HIPAA compliance as reasonable security. A recording in the room needs the consent of one party, physicians are licensed by the State Education Department, and a person at the clinic approves every message and signs every note.
Every New York enquiry answered by morning, in the language it was written in, and every note signed before the last patient leaves. State law supports that plainly, with a security standard that HIPAA compliance already meets and a one-party recording rule.
Part of the Joint Commission hub, with the framework explained, a readiness checklist and 8 guides.
Part of the AAAHC hub, with the framework explained, a readiness checklist and 7 guides.
See it in your clinicThirty minutes on your own patients and doctors.
Request a demoSee a Chinese WhatsApp enquiry from Flushing become an approved Saturday booking with a deposit in dollars, in fifteen minutes with a clinician who uses wai daily.
| Body or law | Rule | What to ask | How wai meets it |
|---|---|---|---|
| State Education Department, Office of the Professions | Physicians must be licensed and registered to practice in New York | Does every clinician who signs notes hold a current New York registration | Every note stays a draft until the treating clinician signs it |
| Department of Health, Office of Professional Medical Conduct | Investigates complaints about physicians | Can the clinic show who wrote, edited and signed each note | Every message, draft, approval and signature is logged and exportable |
| General Business Law 899-bb, SHIELD Act | Reasonable safeguards for New York residents' private information, met by HIPAA compliance | Is the vendor inside the HIPAA program, with a signed agreement | For Checkout, a business associate agreement is signed before go-live |
| Penal Law 250.00 | Recording needs the consent of at least one party | How is the patient told before the scribe starts | Recording consent is taken at booking |
| HIPAA hosting | Records held under US rules | Which country holds every copy | Records hosted in the clinic's own country, set up with the clinic |
The private care market in New York City
New York City had an estimated 8,584,629 residents on 1 July 2025, and its health care and social assistance businesses took $126.1 billion in receipts in 2022, the latest Economic Census year.1 16.6% of residents are 65 or older, and 7.2% of those under 65 have no health insurance.1
The State Education Department counted 36,461 licensed physicians with a mailing address in the five boroughs on 1 July 2026, out of 82,615 across the state.3 Manhattan accounts for 20,446 of them, Brooklyn for 6,764 and Queens for 5,773. The department notes that a mailing address is not always a practice address, and that registration does not show a licensee is in active practice.3
The rules a New York City clinic works under
Physicians in New York are licensed through the State Education Department's Office of the Professions, which issued 7,079 physician licenses in 2025.3 Complaints go to the Department of Health's Office of Professional Medical Conduct, which investigates physicians and monitors those under orders of the State Board for Professional Medical Conduct.4
The SHIELD Act, General Business Law section 899-bb, requires any business that owns or licenses computerized private information of a New York resident to keep reasonable administrative, technical and physical safeguards.5 A business subject to and in compliance with the HIPAA regulations is a compliant regulated entity and is treated as meeting that duty.5 The practical step is to keep every AI vendor inside the clinic's HIPAA program, with a business associate agreement and a risk assessment on file.
Penal Law section 250.00 defines mechanical overhearing as recording a conversation without the consent of at least one party, by a person not present.6 A clinician in the consulting room is present and a party. Ask the patient anyway, and the guide to US recording laws covers calls with patients in other states.
wai hosts each clinic's records in its own country, under that country's rules. We set this up with your clinic. wai is compliant with these rules and built for clinics in New York City. A New York practice keeps its records in the United States, and the Checkout business associate agreement is signed before go-live, which places wai inside the HIPAA program that section 899-bb recognises.8 wai is built to connect to two large US hospital records systems, both listed on the integrations page. We set up your clinic's connection with you.
The languages New York patients write in
Of 8,001,696 New Yorkers aged five and over, 1,810,363 speak Spanish at home and 493,448 speak Chinese, including Mandarin and Cantonese, in the 2020 to 2024 American Community Survey.2 Another 278,990 speak Russian, Polish or another Slavic language, 188,789 speak French, Haitian or Cajun, and 84,296 speak Arabic.2
Patients can write in any of the any language wai understands.7 The reply is drafted in the language of the message, and someone on the team reads and approves it before it goes.
What a demo shows in New York City
The demo opens on a WhatsApp message written in Chinese at 10:50pm, from a daughter in Flushing asking whether her father can see a cardiologist on Saturday. wai places it in the family's thread, reads each clinician's busy times from Google Calendar, Outlook or Apple Calendar, and drafts a reply offering the open slots. The coordinator approves it at eight the next morning.
The booking link takes a deposit in US dollars by card or Apple Pay through the clinic's own Stripe account, with the clinic as merchant of record.8 Recording consent is taken at booking, and the father answers the intake questions by voice in his own language while the cardiologist reads them in English.
After the visit, the cardiologist reviews the drafted note and referral letter, edits a line and signs. Bring a real enquiry from last week, in the language it arrived in, and watch it run.
For health systems, insurers and public bodies in New York
New York hospital groups, insurers and city agencies can commission a system of their own on wai, carrying their own brand. An insurer can route members to the right clinic and receive complete records back. Data, configuration and model rights are settled in the contract, and each build starts with one pathway and its measures, as the organisations page sets out.
Where to start
First, confirm the clinic's HIPAA security program names every AI vendor, since that program is what makes the clinic a compliant regulated entity under section 899-bb.5 Second, add one line on AI and recording to the intake form, using the consent form template as a base.
Third, count last month's enquiries by language and by hour, so the demo runs on the clinic's real mix. Fourth, book fifteen minutes and bring those enquiries. The New York statutes here were read on 15 October 2026, and the clinic's counsel should confirm how they apply.
Send last month's enquiries by language and hour, and we show the Saturday they would have filled.
Frequently asked questions
Does the SHIELD Act apply to a clinic that already follows HIPAA?
Yes, and HIPAA compliance satisfies it. Section 899-bb treats a business subject to and in compliance with the HIPAA regulations as a compliant regulated entity.5
Is New York a one-party consent state for recording?
Yes. Penal Law section 250.00 makes recording unlawful only without the consent of at least one party, and the clinician in the room is a party.6 Asking the patient first is still the right practice.
Who licenses and disciplines physicians in New York?
Can patients write in the language they use at home?
Where are a New York clinic's records hosted?
wai hosts each clinic's records in its own country, under that country's rules. We set this up with your clinic. For New York that is the United States, with the Checkout business associate agreement signed before go-live.8
Does a person approve every message to a patient?
Yes. wai drafts, and someone at the clinic approves before anything is sent. The treating physician signs every note and letter.
Sources
- 1US Census Bureau, 2025QuickFacts, New York city, Chicago city, Miami city and Boston cityRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 2US Census Bureau, 2025American Community Survey 2020 to 2024 5-year estimates, table C16001, language spoken at home, New York cityRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 3New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions, 2026Medicine license statistics, licenses issued and geographic distributionRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 4New York State Department of HealthPhysician and physician assistant disciplinary and other actions, Office of Professional Medical ConductRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 5New York State Senate, Open Legislation, 2020General Business Law section 899-bb, data security protectionsRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 6New York State Senate, Open LegislationPenal Law section 250.00, eavesdropping definitionsRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 7wai, 2026wai changelog, intake answered by voice in any languageRead 15 October 2026Read source
- 8wai, 2026wai CheckoutRead 15 October 2026Read source
Every New York enquiry answered by morning, in the patient's own language.
Fifteen minutes with a clinician who uses wai daily, run on your own New York enquiries. We reply within one working day.
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See it on your own patients, then build it with us
Thirty minutes on your own patients, doctors and rules, in your market. We reply within one working day, and the clinics that partner with us early shape what we build next.
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