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From pre- and self-diagnosis of symptoms to prescription drug treatments and ongoing care, millions of U.S. consumers have used AI chatbots for health and wellness according to the consumer health adoption survey from Rock Health. The report was published in late March 2026, with AI-focused data from the consumer survey fielded in December 2025. 
In just one year from 2024 to 2025, consumers’ use of AI chatbots for health information doubled from 16% of people to 32%.
The most popular brand of AI for health information seeking was ChatGPT (owned by OpenAI, with whom Microsoft is a major partner), used by 23% of seekers, followed by Gemini (from Google) for 15% of consumers using AI for health. Other vendors of chatbots for health garnered lower single-digits in share of users. 
As we might anticipate, healthcare AI users tend to be digital health tech consumers for other devices and apps more than non-AI users, shown in the second bar chart.
For example, twice the percentage of consumers who use AI for health purposes used an app or virtual care program in the past year: that was 84% of AI users compared with 42% of non-AI users.
There are other significant digital health-behavioral issues this chart illustrates, as well – such as a big delta between folks who used at-home test kits and those who own wearable devices. 
Once folks use AI for health care purposes, they follow up with a variety of actions: from greatest likelihood to least in this survey, we find that,
- 42% searched for more information
- 40% consulted a provider
- 35% discussed their findings with family or friends
- 32% tried out a new health behavior
- 30% save the information for later
- 26% advised someone else
- 22% changed or made an appointment, and,
- 18% adjusted their medications.
Among consumers using AI for health purposes, 59% explored treatment options based on a diagnosis, and 55% researched prescription drugs or side effects. 
Health Populi’s Hot Points: Trust is a precursor for health engagement, so I was glad to see an updated consumer study from EBRI (the Employee Benefit Research Institute) published this month on trust among U.S. consumers ages 21 to 64 with private health insurance coverage. Note that this working-age population is the focus of EBRI’s research methodology.
The far two right vertical bars tell the story, that, when making health care decisions, 55% of working-age Americans trust AI and digital tools less than they do care from a health provider.
Still, EBRI recognizes that, “AI tools are becoming part of how many consumers approach health decision making,” which is certainly implied by the Rock Health study.
In further details from the EBRI survey, the Institute found that,
- 64% of the surveyed consumers wish their data could be shared more effectively with their physicians
- 61% believe smart health technology has made it easier to access the care they needed
- 59% of consumers said they trust the data collected by their smart health technology to be secure
- At the same time, 59% also said they question the accuracy of the data they get from smart health technology
- 56% of surveyed consumers are comfortable with smart health technology using AI, and
- 47% of folks trust the health care decisions AI provides.
Importantly, and an opportunity for industry, 42% of folks agreed with the statements that, “I want to use AI tools to help me make health care decisions or choose which health plan is right for me, but I don’t know where to start.”
EBRI contracted Greenwald Research to conduce the 2025 Consumer Engagement in Health Care Survey among 2,001 online Americans ages 21 to 64 with private health insurance, between October and November 2025.
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