The trend: Patients are far more likely to trust AI chatbots for general health information than for healthcare management, according to an April Phreesia survey of more than 3,200 US adult patients as they checked in through its platform at doctors' offices.

• 53% trust AI to help them understand symptoms.
• 47% trust it to learn about a health condition.
• 38% trust AI to interpret test results.
• Only 12% trust AI to help them learn how to stay healthy.
• Even fewer (9%) trust it to help manage an ongoing health condition.

Why it matters: Even as consumer use of AI for health information climbs, patients mostly consult AI for health information, not authority. Phreesia found that 21% of patients use AI chatbots for health-related questions, up from 18% in December. More than 4 in 10 (42%) who use chatbots turn to them at least weekly.

But clinicians still hold the role of verification. Among the half (52%) of Phreesia respondents who take AI-generated health information to their doctor, 66% do so to verify the chatbot's information.

The ceiling for AI’s trust limitation shows up when the stakes are higher. An April Edelman Trust report found that 44% of US adults were influenced by AI on diet and nutrition and 43% on vitamins and supplements decisions, but only 25% acted on its guidance for short-term medical treatments and 19% on long-term disease management.

Implications for healthcare providers: Physicians must still account for AI's influence even as consumers currently trust it mainly for general wellness. The chatbot responses patients read at home will likely shape the questions patients ask, the conditions they worry about, and the treatment options they consider before they ever enter the exam room. Providers need to proactively discuss patients' AI use during visits, surface any misconceptions, and reframe chatbot-generated information in the proper clinical context.

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