One in Four Americans Now Use AI for Health Advice, Often Before Doctor Visits
Twenty-five percent of U.S. adults have used an AI tool or chatbot for health information, according to a nationally representative survey of more than 5,500 adults conducted between October and December 2025 by the West Health-Gallup Center on Healthcare in America. Most treat AI as a supplement to traditional care rather than a replacement.
Among recent users, 59% said they use ChatGPT, Google AI summaries, or similar tools to research before visiting a doctor. Fifty-six percent use AI after appointments to better understand their care.
Who's Using AI for Health, and Why
Age shapes how Americans approach AI-assisted health research. Sixty-nine percent of adults aged 18 to 29 who use AI for health information said they research before doctor visits, compared with 43% of those 65 and older.
Income drives usage when cost or access barriers exist. Among households earning less than $24,000 annually, 32% said they used AI because they couldn't afford a doctor visit. That figure drops to 2% for households earning $180,000 or more.
Some Americans turn to AI after experiencing poor care. Fourteen percent of recent users said they used AI because they couldn't pay for a visit, 16% because they couldn't access a provider, and 21% because they felt dismissed by a previous provider.
What Americans Ask AI About
Health questions tend to cluster around everyday concerns. Fifty-nine percent of recent users asked AI about nutrition or exercise, and 58% asked about physical symptoms.
Beyond basic information, users seek help interpreting medical complexity. Forty-six percent asked AI to explain medication side effects, 44% to interpret medical information, and 38% to research a diagnosis.
The Trust Problem
Confidence in AI-generated health information remains low. Only 4% of users said they strongly trust its accuracy, while roughly one-third trust it, one-third neither trust nor distrust it, and one-third distrust it entirely.
Safety concerns emerged in the data as well. Eleven percent of recent users said AI recommended healthcare information they believed was unsafe.
Some Skip Doctor Visits After Using AI
Fourteen percent of recent AI users said the information they received led them to skip a provider visit in the past 30 days. Projected across the entire adult population, this represents approximately 14 million Americans who did not see a healthcare provider because of AI-generated advice.
The survey found that 46% of AI users said the tools made them feel more confident asking questions of their providers. Twenty-two percent said AI helped them identify issues earlier, and 19% said it helped them avoid unnecessary tests or procedures.
What This Means for Healthcare Systems
Healthcare providers face a shifting dynamic. As patients arrive with AI-researched questions and symptom lists, appointments may become more focused-or more complicated, depending on the accuracy of that research.
The gap between low trust and continued use presents a challenge. Patients are making healthcare decisions based on information they don't fully believe in. Healthcare systems will need to address how AI for Healthcare fits into clinical workflows, particularly when distinguishing between appropriate supplemental use and cases where AI substitutes for necessary medical evaluation.
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