The trend: More than half (51%) of US consumers see healthcare and pharma advertising on connected TV (CTV)—up from 41.8% last year, per EMARKETER’s “US Digital Health 2026” survey. That puts CTV ahead of search and social media as the most noticed channel.

• 49.2% of survey respondents notice healthcare ads on search engines, down from 51.9% in last year’s survey.
• 43.6% notice ads on social media, down from 45% year over year.

Why it matters: Changing viewer attention underscores healthcare and pharma advertisers’ shift from traditional to digital media placements. CTV in particular underscores the move from linear to digital TV platforms.

Baby boomers (ages 62-80) overindexed on noticing CTV ads, with 59.2% recalling healthcare and pharma ads there. They’re a key audience for healthcare and pharma brands due to higher healthcare use and prescription drug spending.

Gen Z (45.3%) and millennials (45.3%) were less likely to notice ads on CTV but were more likely to see them on social channels. Two-thirds (66.8%) of Gen Z and 49.7% of millennials see or hear healthcare and pharma ads on social media.

Key stat: We include CTV in digital nonmobile spending, which we forecast will reach $11.09 billion in 2026, up 4.3% YoY. Digital nonmobile will account for just over one-third (33.6%) of healthcare and pharma’s total media ad spending.

Implications for pharma marketers and agencies: CTV is becoming one of the most effective ways for healthcare and pharma brands to capture consumer attention, especially among older viewers. That makes it a strong channel for broad awareness as ad budgets shift from linear to digital video.

Meanwhile, younger consumers are more likely to notice healthcare ads on social platforms, supporting a strategy where CTV builds awareness while social and search support follow-up research and interaction.