Call Recording: Consent, Disclosures & Best Practices

1. Why call recording consent matters

In the U.S., federal law generally allows a call to be recorded if at least one party on the call consents. Some states, however, require all parties to consent before a call can be recorded.

Because Annie can record and transcribe calls in real time, we recommend that every office using Annie:

1. Let callers know that the call may be recorded and/or transcribed.
2. Give callers a way to opt out if they don’t want to be recorded or interact with an AI assistant (for example, by hanging up or reaching a human by another method).

Your legal counsel can advise you on exactly what’s required for your state and situation, but our product is designed to help you implement these best practices.

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2. Where the “this call may be recorded” message lives

Many offices already play a call-recording notice before the call ever reaches Annie. Because of that, you have a few options:

• Option 1: Use your existing recording notice only
  If your phone system already plays a clear recording/transcription notice before the call is forwarded to Annie, you can ask Annie Support to remove the additional recording notice from Annie’s greeting to avoid repetition.

• Option 2: Use Annie’s notice only
  If you prefer, Annie can speak the recording/transcription notice as part of her greeting instead of using a pre-recorded message in your phone system.

• Option 3: Use both
  Some offices choose to keep both a pre-recorded notice and Annie’s spoken notice for extra clarity.

Note: However you configure it, you should make sure callers are clearly notified that calls may be recorded/transcribed. Please confirm with your legal counsel which option works best for your office.

Example wording you can use or customize:

“This call may be recorded and transcribed for quality, training, and scheduling purposes.”

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3. Telling callers they’re speaking with an AI assistant

Separate from call-recording laws, several states have introduced AI transparency laws requiring businesses to clearly disclose when a person is interacting with an AI system instead of a human.

To support that, regardless of state we recommend that Annie be introduced as an AI assistant in a clear, straightforward way.

Where this disclosure can appear

You have flexibility here too:

• In your pre-recorded message before Annie picks up

• In Annie’s own greeting when she starts talking

• Or a combination of both

Customizable wording

You don’t have to use a specific script. Offices can tweak the greeting to match their brand and tone, as long as it remains clear that Annie is an AI assistant (not a human or a medical professional).

Examples you can adapt:

• “Thanks for calling [Practice Name]. I'm Annie, our AI assistant.”

• “Hi, this is Annie, an AI assistant for [Practice Name].”

If you’d like help updating your script you can do so here. Or, reach out to Annie Support or your Customer Success Manager. 

Note: We recommend that you make sure callers are clearly notified that Annie is an AI assistant. Please confirm with your legal counsel which option and/or script works best for your office.

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4. Giving callers an option not to use Annie

Annie should give callers a way to opt out of interacting with the AI assistant and/or having the call recorded/transcribed.

Note: The patient hanging up after the recording plays counts as opting out. 

We can help configure Annie’s flows so that requests for a human (e.g., caller says “representative,” “real person,” “front desk,” etc.) are routed appropriately.

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5. Guardrails around medical advice

Annie is designed to help with scheduling and basic non-clinical questions, not medical advice or diagnosis.

Emerging laws in some states restrict how chatbots can be used in medical contexts and generally do not allow AI systems to present themselves as licensed health professionals or to provide diagnostic advice.

To support this:

• Annie does not describe herself as a doctor, hygienist, nurse, or any other licensed medical professional.

• Annie should not answer clinical or diagnosis questions (for example, “what is causing my pain?” or “should I take this medication?”).

Instead, we use or recommend a standard medical-advice deflection. For example:

“I’m not able to answer clinical questions or provide a diagnosis, but I can help schedule an appointment so that one of our doctors can assist you.”

We are continuing to refine these guardrails and default responses to keep Annie focused on scheduling and other administrative tasks.

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6. What’s available now vs. what’s coming

We are actively working to align Annie with evolving legal and regulatory guidance. At a high level:

Available now (or via configuration with our Customer Support Team):

• Ability to customize Annie’s greeting, including how she introduces herself as an AI/automated assistant

• Ability to customize or remove Annie’s recording notice if your phone system already plays one

• Ability to customize opt-out / “speak to a human” messaging and routing

Continuing improvements:

• Strengthening guardrails to keep Annie focused on scheduling and away from clinical advice

• Refining default scripts and this article as laws and best practices evolve

• Exposing more settings that give our customers control over these guardrails and allow for self-customization, based on decisions with your legal team. 

If you’d like help updating your scripts or call flows, please contact Annie Support and we’ll walk through your current setup and options.

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7. Talk to your legal counsel

Because call recording, AI transparency, and healthcare regulations vary by state and can change over time, the best source of guidance is your own legal counsel. They can:

• Confirm whether your state is one-party or all-party consent for recording

• Advise you on what exact wording and placement of disclosures they prefer

• Review your Annie scripts and call flows for compliance

Our goal is to provide flexible tools and recommended templates so your practice can implement whatever your counsel recommends.