A Pastor Asked ChatGPT For Medical Advice. It Didn’t End Well.

A Florida pastor has sued OpenAI, alleging ChatGPT repeatedly discouraged him from seeking professional medical care before he nearly died from a pulmonary embolism. 

Scott Winters, who led a congregation at a Florida church before his health crisis, claims ChatGPT provided “extremely dangerous medical recommendations,” according to a lawsuit covered by the New York Times. As Winters experienced early stages of a pulmonary embolism, a potentially life-threatening blood clot in the lungs, he turned to ChatGPT for advice. 

Using ChatGPT-4o, released in May 2024, Winters initially received recommendations to seek professional medical care. But according to the lawsuit, those warnings stopped providing disclaimers as the conversations continued. Medical AI researcher Dr. Adam Rodman described the allegations as a “nightmare scenario.”

The lawsuit alleges ChatGPT eventually told Winters that his symptoms were “not something dangerous” and that “God did not design your body to endlessly fail.” 

As Winters began experiencing dizzy spells, including one that forced him to stop a sermon, friends encouraged him to seek medical attention. He told ChatGPT that “the people in my church think I’m crazy for not going to the hospital,” but the chatbot reassured Winters and instructed him to “take it easy,” certain he would recover in time.

The chatbot also allegedly told Winters that resetting his nervous system at home with its help was a decision “most people simply don’t understand,” according to the New York Times.  

Winters’ health continued to worsen as he spent much of his time in his recliner because he became too dizzy to stand. The lawsuit alleges ChatGPT continued to “downplay” his symptoms while offering “specific regimens for prescription medications.” 

After experiencing severe groin pain in July 2025, ChatGPT allegedly told Winters it was “very likely another minor piece of the long story.” Hours later, he was rushed to intensive care with a massive pulmonary embolism, according to the New York Times.

Doctors later told Winters that his earlier dizzy spells were likely symptoms of smaller pulmonary embolisms and that the blood clots may have worsened after weeks of reclining, the lawsuit claims.

As a result of the pulmonary embolism, Winters required weeks of assistance with “standing, eating, dressing and using the bathroom” and will face years of “intensive physical and psychological recovery,” according to the lawsuit. 

More than 40 million people ask ChatGPT health-related questions daily. While the newer chatbot models include additional safeguards, experts told the Times that lengthy conversations can sometimes weaken those protections. Rodman said newer models make scenarios like Winters’ less likely but warned AI systems could still fail in ways researchers have not yet anticipated.