Q: What problems have customers reported with Kinney Drugs AI refill issues? A: Customers have reported wrong refill requests, delays between physicians ordering drugs and the pharmacy processing them, inability to locate longtime accounts, incorrect dosages, and missed notifications for ready refills. Many also raised privacy concerns about third-party access to their protected health information. Q: Who built the AI assistant used by the pharmacy and what is it called? A: The AI assistant was built by a third-party company called Synerio and Kinney Drugs named the system Burt. Kinney Drugs implemented the virtual assistant in May and notes in its terms that Burt may not be accurate, complete or up-to-date. Q: How are customers enrolled in the AI system and can they opt out? A: Kinney Drugs’ terms state that any customer who provides their telephone number automatically consents to interacting with the tool, though customers may later opt out. Some customers said they did not realize the company had implemented the tool until they heard the AI voice on a refill call. Q: What should I check before approving a refill when I get a call or text from the AI? A: Check your pill bottle for the drug name, strength, prescriber, last fill date and remaining refills, and count your doses to estimate days remaining. If the call or text is unclear, compare with your insurer or clinic portal and ask to speak to a pharmacist before approving. Q: How can I limit how my health data is used given Kinney Drugs AI refill issues? A: Ask the pharmacy for its current privacy policy and how data is shared with vendors, limit contact methods to one channel you check, and request an account note such as “Do not use AI for my refills.” Under HIPAA you can request copies of your records, submit written correction requests to the pharmacy’s privacy officer, and file a complaint with HHS OCR if you believe protected health information was disclosed improperly. Q: What should I do if the AI requests a wrong medication or dose? A: Do not approve the request and say “pharmacist” or press 0 to reach a human; you can use a script such as “Cancel this refill request” to prompt staff to document the reason. If the problem repeats, ask the pharmacist-in-charge for a documented fix, contact corporate customer care with dates and details, and alert your prescriber to cancel or resend the correct order. Q: Are vendors like Synerio required to follow HIPAA and how does Kinney Drugs handle vendor agreements? A: Kinney Drugs’ privacy policy discloses that customers’ protected health information may be used in AI tools, and the company says it maintains business associate agreements and multiple layers of security controls but declined to share vendor contracts. Synerio states its tools are built to comply with HIPAA, while experts and filings warn that reliance on third-party AI can create compliance and security risks outside the pharmacy’s direct control. Q: What alternatives exist if I don’t want to use the AI refill system? A: You can ask the pharmacy to opt you out of AI calls, request human-confirmed calls or in-person pickup, or transfer prescriptions to another pharmacy or to mail-order or a hospital outpatient pharmacy, and pharmacies can assist with transfers. You can also request 90-day fills and medication synchronization to reduce interactions, though some rural customers may have limited options.