Healthcare Consumers Increasingly Turn to AI Before Seeing Doctors, ZS Report Finds

Healthcare consumers are increasingly using artificial intelligence (AI) to guide health decisions before consulting physicians, according to the 2026 Future of Health Report released by the ZS Impact Institute on June 24. Based on responses from more than 10,000 healthcare consumers and providers across the United States, Germany, and China, the report found that AI is changing how patients enter and navigate the healthcare system.

The study found that about 90% of respondents who use AI and digital health tools trust the information they receive nearly as much as advice from their physician. Researchers also found that 42% of U.S. consumers search for symptoms online before deciding whether to seek medical care, while 52% ask physicians for specific medications. Among healthcare providers surveyed, 68% reported an increase in patients requesting therapies by name.

Patients Are Shifting Care Decisions Earlier

The report suggests that patients are making more healthcare decisions independently before interacting with providers, changing the traditional care pathway. According to the findings, between 45% and 68% of patients across the surveyed markets delay seeking care until they become sick.

"Patients are changing faster than the system designed to serve them," Jon Roffman, Principal at ZS and lead contributor to the report, said in the announcement. "AI has put medical knowledge directly in patients' hands, but the healthcare system still assumes patients will come to it first."