The data: Among US consumers who use AI for health guidance, AI-generated information strongly influences their decisions about whether to seek medical care, per a May 2026 eHealth survey.

• 37% of AI health users said the advice they received led them not to get care.
• 30% said it drove them to get care.
• 27% said it didn’t change anything.
• 6% said it led them to change something about the care they were already receiving.

Why it matters: Health is the fastest-growing consumer use case for AI this year, according to our forecasts. Some 30.2% of genAI users will turn to the technology for health guidance in 2026, up 37% year over year. AI is becoming more than an information source. It’s shaping people’s healthcare decisions.

eHealth’s data reinforces recent polling showing that consumers are acting on AI-based health information and advice. Follow-up actions range from verifying chatbot health information through other sources, consulting a medical professional, or making health behavior changes to seeking a second opinion after a medical appointment (which led to another doctor’s visit about half the time), according to March and April reports from Rock Health and Tebra, respectively.

Implications for healthcare providers: AI is becoming a powerful intermediary between consumers and physicians, and it’s shaping decisions before clinicians even enter the room. eHealth’s survey respondents were more likely to forgo care than pursue it after using AI for health advice, suggesting that the tech may be providing false reassurance or failing to flag serious symptoms. That risk is compounded by the fact that AI chatbots still deliver inaccurate outputs some of the time.

Trust in AI health answers will grow alongside usage, and providers are at risk of losing their influence if they don’t react. They must embed AI guidance into their own websites and apps so that clinical context and follow-up are only a click away. Some health systems and tech-forward primary care organizations are already doing this. For the rest, these integrations are shifting from an innovation initiative to a competitive necessity.

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