According to a recent Sage Growth Partners C-Suite survey of more than 100 hospital and health system C-suite leaders, a defining shift for the first time, executives rank patient experience as their top strategic initiative for the next two years. They’re doubling down on virtual care and digital health to improve key patient experience metrics like access, safety, and satisfaction, but most are still struggling to realize meaningful ROI from their investments. Will there be meaningful ROI for their investments in 2026 and how will that happen?
We asked our experts what progress they think we will see in 2026. Here is what they had to say. And check out all our prediction posts looking to 2026.
Dr. Parmjot Bains, CEO, ImpediMed
LinkedIn: Dr Parmjot Bains, MD, M Phil, GAICD
As health systems increasingly prioritize patient experience, meaningful ROI will depend on digital health investments that deliver both clinical and operational value. Advances like bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS) are ushering in a new era of precision in patient care. By continuously tracking changes in fluid, muscle, and fat composition, clinicians can intervene earlier and personalize care across oncology, cardiology, and metabolic health. Moving beyond one-time diagnostics to dynamic, whole-body measurement, digital tools are beginning to show how they can improve safety, satisfaction, and outcomes.
Sean Cassidy, CEO and Co-Founder, Lucem Health
LinkedIn: Sean Cassidy
Health systems will apply AI to improve patient experience by removing delays that weaken access and satisfaction. For example, AI-powered platforms that surface patients who are eligible for the next steps in the care pathway based on existing EHR data and coordinate outreach through existing engagement workflows can increase conversion and reduce drop-offs throughout the care journey. These improvements can help organizations deliver high-yield programs that strengthen pathway performance and ROI.
Soy Chen, Chief Data Scientist, Lightbeam Health Solutions
LinkedIn: Soy Chen
ROI in AI-enabled care delivery is achievable in 2026, but only for systems that address the core data science challenges: data completeness, generalizability, model drift, bias mitigation, and real-world validation. AI can only enhance access, personalization, and care navigation when models are built on complete, representative data and continuously monitored for drift, bias, and real-world performance. Models generate value when they are trained on representative populations, monitored continuously, and embedded into environments where their predictions can be measured and improved. Organizations that deploy AI without attention to these fundamentals, or without mechanisms to evaluate real-world performance, should not expect durable returns.
Mike Coen, Chief Product & Technology Officer, TeleTracking Technologies
LinkedIn: Michael Coen
Hospitals are likely to see meaningful ROI on their AI investments in 2026 as solutions move beyond insight and into real-time operational orchestration. By optimizing patient flow, staffing, and care coordination, AI ensures patients receive the right care at the right time and in the right setting, reducing delays and avoidable variability. These operational improvements drive measurable gains in patient experience, clinical outcomes, and performance metrics such as length of stay, throughput, and readmission rates. The strongest returns will come from health systems that treat AI not as a standalone tool, but as a core, integrated operational capability that actively supports care delivery.
Jason Considine, President, Experian Health
LinkedIn: Jason Considine
We expect this next wave of AI adoption to have a measurable impact across the industry. The competitive line will be drawn between organizations that have leveraged AI capabilities into their RCM toolkit and those that fail to solve their big operational problems. AI can help providers reduce costly errors and denials, strengthen their financial stability and ultimately improve patient experiences.
Amee Devani, CEO and Co-Founder, WellBeam
LinkedIn: Amee Devani
Interoperability has shifted from aspiration to expectation, with new regulatory momentum and real-world progress by platforms like WellBeam unlocking EMR-to-EMR data exchange across the continuum. This data liquidity is key. When post-acute and acute care teams can work from a shared source of truth, we unlock high-value use cases: smarter order authorizations, real-time clinical collaboration, proactive risk management, all of which directly improve patient outcomes and reduce the total cost of care. That’s where ROI lives.
Moreover, as risk-bearing models like CMS’s TEAM initiative gain traction, the demand for solutions that drive down total cost of care while optimizing quality will grow. Digital health tools that embed directly into care team workflows and support longitudinal care coordination, especially across historically disconnected sites, will be the ones to deliver both financial and clinical returns.
Todd Doze, CEO, Janus Health
LinkedIn: Todd Doze
Meaningful returns will come from integrating digital health and virtual care into the operational fabric of the health system, not treating them as standalone initiatives. When AI helps personalize access, streamline navigation, and remove friction from every step of the patient journey, both patient satisfaction and financial performance will follow.
David Dyke, Chief Product Officer, Relatient
LinkedIn: David Dyke
Is 2026 the year healthcare ditches analog?
Despite the rise of digital tools, healthcare still defaults to many analog processes, like handling patient interactions primarily over the phone, or sending documents via mail or fax. With new calls to kill the clipboard, in 2026 we’ll see a much stronger shift away from these “default” behaviors, especially as patients continue to have little patience for old-school approaches. Long-standing IVR systems traditionally used in healthcare are on the way out, and the same is true for manual workflows like waitlist management, where staff must track cancellations and call patients one by one to fill openings. The rise of tools like Voice AI will create more opportunities for intelligent automation to move organizations away from these analog practices in ways that benefit both the business and clinical sides of a long-term practice.
John Elliott, Vice President, Head of Sales & Growth, MDClone
LinkedIn: John Elliott
With patient experience a top focus, hospitals and health systems must embrace virtual care and digital health to deliver better outcomes, from improved access to enhanced patient safety and satisfaction. The next wave of ROI will come from solutions which provide privacy-safe, high-quality data to guide decision-making, optimize workflows, and measure impact—turning digital investments into tangible improvements for both patients and the organization.
Bob Farrell, CEO, mPulse
LinkedIn: Bob Farrell
Patient trust will turn from a compliance strategy to a trust strategy: In 2026, I believe patient trust will become the defining metric of health plan success. We’re entering an era where health plans can’t rely on transactional engagement, they need to demonstrate predictability, consistency, and empathy across every interaction. Trust builds when members see their plan follow through on promises, communicate clearly through their preferred channel, and make it easy to get the care they need without confusion or delay. While AI will play a major role, it should be governed and invisible, with the ultimate goal to remove friction, not add to it. When a member feels that their plan knows them, respects their preferences, and anticipates their needs, that’s when trust starts to grow. That’s why 2026 will be the year leading plans turn digital engagement from a compliance exercise into a trust-building strategy.
Susan Grant, Chief Clinical Officer, symplr
LinkedIn: Susan Grant, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN
In 2026, a shift in patient experience will come from giving nurses and care teams the time and space to be fully present to form meaningful connections with their patients. As automation and ambient tools remove hours of administrative work, patients will feel the difference in the clinician’s presence and ability to understand and respond to their needs through powerful moments: connection, time, eye contact, listening, explanation, and sharing of understandable and meaningful information. Technology will work in the background to anticipate needs and coordinate care more smoothly, while the human connection becomes more visible. I believe the next evolution of patient experience won’t be defined by new channels or surveys, but by restoring the patient-clinician relationship at the center of care.
Gary Hamilton, CEO, InteliChart
LinkedIn: Gary Hamilton
The organizations that finally see real ROI from their patient experience technology investments will be those using digital tools to make every interaction feel effortless and personal. The goal isn’t just faster scheduling or smoother billing; it’s technology that listens, remembers, and adapts to each patient. When digital health feels genuinely human, engagement grows, loyalty strengthens, and measurable returns naturally follow.
Patricia Hayes, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Imagine Pediatrics
LinkedIn: Patricia Hayes, MD
In the coming year, patient experience strategies for children with special health care needs will shift from transactional care to relationship-based care that is accessible and personalized. Health analytics will play a critical role in identifying needs earlier, guiding care plans, and ensuring families receive the right support at the right time. Virtual care will expand families’ access to their pediatric teams, creating a consistent circle of support that extends beyond clinic walls. The organizations that embrace broader care delivery transformation through integrated and personalized care will see stronger trust, higher satisfaction, and measurable improvements in both outcomes and family well-being.
Patty Hayward, General Manager of Healthcare and Life Sciences, Talkdesk
LinkedIn: Patty Hayward
Patient experience will be defined less by apps and digital front doors and more by how intelligently we guide people through moments that matter. AI-powered contact centers will shift from answering questions to anticipating needs, helping patients navigate eligibility, re-enrollment, scheduling, and other confusing or challenging moments with clarity and compassion. When data connects behind the scenes and interactions reflect a patient’s context, health literacy, and anxiety level, complexity becomes competence. That’s how trust and loyalty are built.
Lucienne Marie Ide, M.D., PH.D., Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Rimidi
LinkedIn: Lucienne Ide
The standard for patient engagement will more closely mirror consumer expectations for convenience and personalization in 2026 and beyond. Leading health systems have already recognized the shift and are working to unify patient-generated data from monitoring tools with clinical workflows to prioritize continuous care experiences that extend beyond the office. This model will enable proactive, personalized outreach for managing chronic conditions and patients at various stages of their health journey. Providers will be able to leverage positive changes to reimbursement to be compensated for this proactive, personalized care that patients want and that improves overall population health outcomes.
Mary Jagim, MS, RN, CEN, FAEN, Principal Consultant, CenTrak
LinkedIn: Mary Jagim, MS, RN, CEN, FAEN
The best way to achieve a substantial increase in value, ROI, and efficiency in a healthcare facility is through a personalized approach that combines a strong patient- and caregiver-focused design with a strategic roadmap that purposefully considers the goals for the future. One key option is to leverage existing patient surveys with Real-Time Location Systems (RTLS) insights. We can use those surveys to quantify the difference RTLS can make on the patient experience. For example, the survey responses related to wait times can be reviewed with actionable RTLS data and thoughtfully improved after implementation. We’ve had great success capturing those data points in past implementations and they can be a very powerful value point. I recommend pursuing this in 2026. It can help support actionable insights in areas that need investments to benefit patient experiences and provide the opportunity to further utilize insights directly from your patients.
Another key to success is aligning the RTLS initiative with your corporate strategy. An RTLS solution can enable so many process improvement initiatives that it should be seen as a mission critical tool. I recommend starting with an RTLS solution design process to identify how RTLS can be leveraged in your organization, and to establish a clear roadmap, an execution plan, and staff education lessons to make it happen. I strongly advise collaborating with an experienced RTLS technology partner that provides expert-led consulting and training services so you can apply best practices and avoid potentially costly mistakes. By factoring in a range of experience from each department of the hospital, the strategic vendor, and AI monitoring, healthcare teams can maximize emerging technologies to drive meaningful change throughout their enterprise.
Steven Lane, MD, MPH, Chief Medical Officer, Health Gorilla
LinkedIn: Steven Lane, MD, MPH
Providers will continue to make progress in removing barriers that restrict data flow in the next year driven by clearer enforcement guidance from CMS and ONC, expanding TEFCA participation, and the adoption of standardized shareback and granular-consent frameworks that make patient-directed exchange easier to operationalize. For the healthcare system to improve patient outcomes, patients themselves must gain true ownership of their data, which means the ability to share it securely, through granular consent, with any provider or application they choose.
Ratnakar Lavu, EVP and Chief Digital Information Officer, Elevance Health
LinkedIn: Ratnakar Lavu
Meaningful ROI is more likely to happen when stakeholders take a consumer-centered approach to their strategy and think about how they can responsibly leverage digital tools and technologies, such as AI, to make healthcare simpler, more affordable, and personalized. Through AI-driven tools, it is possible to identify health plan members who could benefit from outreach to proactively address gaps in their care. This outreach supports a member’s whole health and builds stronger relationships between consumers and their health plan. Additionally, AI-enabled tools can help cut down on time-consuming tasks, so care providers can spend more time with patients, helping to delivery improved health outcomes. AI-enabled tools can also help employees better serve customers by reducing repetitive tasks and making the right information more available at the right time, leading to higher quality customer service. This holistic approach to improving the healthcare experience will help stakeholders realize meaningful ROI in the future.
Charles Lee, MD, Senior Director of Clinical Knowledge and Senior Advisor for Health Literacy and Language Barriers, FDB (First Databank, Inc.)
LinkedIn: Charles Lee
Improving inpatient experience will rely on technologies to provide easier-to-understand, more timely communication from the hospital staff. For example, when nurses can instantly access and share clear, patient-friendly medication information through their digital platforms, patients gain better understanding and confidence in treatments they receive. These informed interactions can boost HCAHPS communication scores, strengthen trust, and create measurable ROI through enhanced adherence and patient satisfaction.
Lisa Mazur, Partner, McDermott Will & Schulte
LinkedIn: Lisa S. Mazur
Based the advancements and growth we have seen in 2025, hospital and health system investments in virtual care and digital health are expected in 2026 to generate more meaningful ROI, but perhaps not primarily through immediate revenue gains. As patient experience continues to be a top strategic agenda for many systems, ROI will be driven by improved access, quality, and patient satisfaction, all of which translate into lower avoidable utilization (ie, stronger performance in value-based contracts), and increased patient loyalty. ROI will also really accelerate from 2025 to 2026 as organizations move from experimentation or piloting these products to scale, really integrating these digital tools into core provider workflows, and focusing on high-impact use cases (e.g., virtual triage and remote physiological monitoring), and leveraging AI. This may also meaningfully help provider burnout when measured long term. Ultimately, I do think these investments in digital tools will become better embedded into everyday care delivery and tied directly to long-term operational efficiency and financial sustainability, and the data gathered in 2026 will be evidence this shift in ROI.
Dan McDonald, co-founder and CEO, 86Borders
LinkedIn: Dan McDonald
Member experience will advance when engagement becomes the goal instead of the byproduct. Members aren’t asking for more digital tools. They’re asking for care that feels easier, clearer, and more supportive. The future belongs to organizations that make the experience simple enough that people stay engaged without feeling overwhelmed.
Michael Meucci, President and CEO, Arcadia
LinkedIn: Michael Meucci
In 2026, consumerism becomes tangible in a new way. Patients will no longer rely solely on traditional access channels. Instead, they will increasingly choose consumer-oriented technology to help manage their conditions, from navigation tools to virtual chronic-care programs.
For the first time, CMS is reinforcing this shift. With the new ACCESS Model, Medicare will pay organizations based on whether patients actually get healthier. To achieve those outcomes, ACCESS explicitly expects that care will be delivered through virtual modalities, including remote monitoring, FDA-authorized digital tools, and AI-supported workflows. That means beneficiaries will engage more with digital solutions as part of their day-to-day disease management. As they do, I expect they’ll gravitate toward organizations that offer a seamless, intuitive, consumer-grade experience.
This is the point at which we’ll finally see meaningful ROI from patient experience investments. The organizations that benefit most will be the ones that stop treating “patient experience” as a marketing phrase and start operationalizing around it. They will redesign access, automate navigation, and use data to guide patients to the right care at the right moment. A health system using predictive models to identify which patients need outreach, what type of touchpoint is appropriate, and which action is most likely to improve a biomarker or PROM is exactly the kind of capability ACCESS will reward.
The takeaway is simple: when organizations center the consumer, and build the data infrastructure and operational discipline to back it up, they can improve outcomes, manage capacity more intelligently, and grow revenue. Consumer expectations and federal payment policies are now aligned. The organizations that adapt quickly will be the ones that grow.
Steve Mongelli, President, mPulse
LinkedIn: Steve Mongelli
Retention Becomes the New Battleground: With Medicaid shrinking & policy changes, marketplace volatility, and tighter Medicare Advantage margins, member retention will define success in 2026 for payers. Plans can’t afford turnover; they need to protect their member base, making each patient more valuable than ever. In 2026, retention will hinge on creating a consistent, connected member experience.
Meaning smarter, synchronized engagement across every channel along the patient journey with tailored outreach fueled by data and analytics. When you connect required communications like ID cards or EOBs with proactive nudges and education, you create a clearer, more consistent experience that keeps patients engaged in their care. As benefits narrow and expectations increase due to rising healthcare costs and shifting plan designs, the plans that leverage technology to communicate the smartest, especially with aging populations moving into Medicare Advantage, will do better in the market. Those who align their data and AI capability with outreach strategies will deliver the predictability members have been missing.
Shaji Nair, Founder/CEO, FriskaAi
LinkedIn: Shaji Nair
Home-first metabolic care becomes the default model for chronic disease
By 2026, diabetes and metabolic care will shift firmly into the home, powered by continuous monitoring and virtual touchpoints, as well as reimbursement pathways that finally treat data generated by connected and smart devices home-collected data as reliable clinical evidence. Continuous glucose monitors and other remote-monitoring tools will become routine, with Medicare and Medicaid recognizing them as standard chronic-care technologies and providing predictable monthly reimbursement for clinicians.
Health systems will scale integrated monthly care programs that bundle CGM data, remote monitoring, and nutrition guidance into unified offerings that are simple to bill and easier for patients to follow. At the same time, coverage will expand to broader metabolic-risk populations, as more states extend CGM and remote patient monitoring benefits beyond insulin users, enabling large-scale prevention programs that reduce long-term costs for payers.
Laxmi Patel, Chief Strategy Officer, Savista
LinkedIn: Laxmi Patel
Patient-Centric Billing Will Drive Success
As patient financial responsibility grows (now ~30% of provider revenue), providers will need to prioritize consumer focused billing. Patients will demand retail-style transparency and convenience in billing. Revenue cycle leaders have an opportunity to deliver exceptional experiences through clear cost estimates, personalized payment plans, and seamless digital payment options. Organizations that prioritize the patient financial experience will not only enhance collections but also cultivate lasting loyalty and trust.
Hari Prasad, CEO, Yosi Health
LinkedIn: Hari Prasad
Yes, we expect there will be a clear ROI, but only if organizations embrace virtual care and digital tools not-as point solutions – and instead stitch them into a front-to-back workflow. At Yosi Health, we’ve found practices that combine appointment booking, pre-visit intake, real-time insurance verification, reliable telehealth, and behavior-based outreach will result in lower no-shows, faster collections, and higher patient satisfaction scores. These all contribute to measurable ROI that healthcare organizations can report to their leadership teams. The real trick in 2026 will be applying rigorous measurements (linking digital interactions to visit completion, revenue, and outcomes) and ensuring payer/policy alignment so virtual encounters are reimbursed predictably.
Dr. Mark Pratt, Chief Medical Officer, Altera Digital Health
LinkedIn: Mark Pratt, MD
As reimbursement models shift, healthcare organizations must adapt and pull new levers to maintain their margins. As a result, in 2026, hospitals will lean more heavily on patient engagement platforms to avoid preventable losses, from appointment reminders that help prevent no-shows to post-discharge communications aimed at reducing hospital readmissions.
Lance Reid, CEO, Telcion Communications Group
LinkedIn: Lance Reid
Health systems will not see real ROI from patient experience investments in 2026 unless the tools are secure enough for both patients and clinicians to use with confidence. If patients doubt that their information is protected, they will not engage with digital tools. If clinicians worry about data exposure or unstable systems, they will avoid them. Adoption collapses without trust, and ROI disappears.
The organizations that succeed next year will put privacy and security at the center of every digital interaction. Strong identity controls, protected data flows, and reliable infrastructure create the confidence people need to participate. When security becomes the top priority, digital experience finally delivers measurable value.
Clay Ritchey, CEO, Verato
LinkedIn: Clay Ritchey
Exceptional experiences will be measured by patient acquisition, retention, and expanded lifetime value, not clicks, as patients remain loyal to systems that make every micro-moment personal and every connection meaningful and in context. In 2026, digital health investments will start to deliver real returns, but only for organizations that address the data foundations beneath them. Many health systems adopted virtual and digital tools before unifying patient identity, leaving experiences fragmented and outcomes difficult to track. Next year will show that sustainable ROI comes when trusted identity connects the entire patient journey.
Michael Rogozinski, Chief Nursing Officer, Vital
LinkedIn: Michael A. Rogozinski
We’re entering an era in healthcare where technology, data, and empathy converge to create truly personalized care. Patients will soon navigate their health in real time, guided by real-time data from their smartphone that knows them better than any single clinician could. The future of patient experience isn’t just digital; it’s predictive, participatory, and will rest in the hands of the patients themselves.
Ram Sahasranam, co-founder, Fold Health
LinkedIn: Ram Sahasranam
Patient experience will be redefined by continuity, not convenience: AI will act as a persistent care concierge that remembers context, anticipates needs, and coordinates across settings so patients stop being their own quarterback. Brands that feel ‘always with you’ between visits will set the new bar.
Jonathan Shoemaker, CEO, ABOUT Healthcare
LinkedIn: Jonathan Shoemaker
Patient experience will be defined by one thing: flow. When care moves smoothly, no confusion, no bottlenecks, no unnecessary waits, patients feel it. The organizations seeing real ROI will be those that connect their digital investment to that flow, using technology to help shorten wait times, prevent missed appointments, and speed safe discharges. The real innovation ahead lies in aligning people, process, and technology to make that seamless experience the norm, not the exception.
John Showalter, MD, MSIS, Chief Operating Officer, Linus Health
LinkedIn: John Showalter
Meaningful patient experience ROI from digital health will come from giving patients clarity about their health at the moment they need it. People want to understand cognitive concerns quickly and easily so they can act early, plan confidently, and protect their independence. AI-driven systems that embed digital evaluations into virtual care and patient engagement pathways will improve access, reduce anxiety, and support more personalized follow-up. When patients feel informed and empowered, health systems see measurable gains in satisfaction, efficiency, and long-term outcomes.
David B. Snow, Jr., Chairman & CEO, Cedar Gate Technologies, an IQVIA business
LinkedIn: David Snow
Generative AI is a hot topic in healthcare today, with many tech companies working on various applications to address healthcare challenges and needs. But even with all the advances we have seen, implementing AI for the sake of AI won’t have a meaningful impact on healthcare costs and quality in the long term. In 2026, organizations will shift focus to generative business intelligence, AI solutions that make healthcare providers, payers and administrators faster, more efficient, and more effective at managing the economics of healthcare and the wellbeing of populations, including:
- Agentic workflows that onboard all relevant information, creating a source of truth for data-driven decision making that reduces variation among stakeholders.
- Natural language prompts that open actionable clinical and financial insights to every user (with proper guardrails in place), regardless of their level of data expertise.
- Predictive tools that surface opportunities to lower costs and hit quality targets before they have a negative impact on clinical or financial bottom lines.
- Actuarial-grade forecasting tools to model performance and take control of increasingly complex healthcare business arrangements, such as capitation and prospective bundled payments.
Generative AI may be exciting, but generative BI is the practical force that will translate innovation into operational control, financial resilience, better patient outcomes, and a more sustainable U.S. healthcare system.
Pramila Srinivasan, Ph.D., CEO, CharmHealth
LinkedIn: Pramila Srinivasan
Prescription and Healthcare Product Marketplaces Become Standard
Consumers will no longer tolerate opaque drug pricing. By 2026, comparing prescription costs, insurance coverage, generic alternatives, and delivery options will be as easy as booking a flight. Regulatory pressure, coupled with patient demand, will turn drug marketplace platforms into everyday tools. Patients will ask: “What’s the best price, today, delivered to my home?” For EHR platforms, the opportunity is enormous: embedding cost transparency directly into the clinical workflow can help clinicians make better, more affordable prescribing decisions.
Evan Steele, Founder and CEO, rater8
LinkedIn: Evan Steele
While investing in patient experience to improve patient access, safety, and satisfaction in hospitals and health systems is important, organizations that want to see change will need to connect patient feedback to real operational action. Most organizations are sitting on thousands of open-ended comments, call recordings, and reviews. Patient experience teams need to be able to act on feedback they are collecting and connect with teams that can rectify the issues patients are citing. Some teams gather the information, but don’t measure the outcome. Did patients get faster access, did the practice see better retention, are fewer patients falling through the cracks? The answers to these questions are what drives real ROI.
In 2026, patient experience teams will use AI to make feedback usable at scale. There is a meaningful signal in all of it, but few teams have the capacity to review it manually. AI can identify patterns, flag recurring issues, and help teams spot problems before they escalate. That capability matters because patient sentiment is increasingly linked to patient volume, quality performance measures, and malpractice risk. At this point, patient experience is no longer a soft metric; it is tied directly to risk and financial exposure.
Scott Stuewe, President and CEO, DirectTrust
LinkedIn: Scott Stuewe
Meaningful progress across cost, quality, and patient engagement can occur when improvements in the patient-consumer experience also deliver equal value to clinicians and care teams and enhance care quality. We have seen that when virtual care is delivered with apps and artificial intelligence, backed by a real (but more efficiently deployed) clinical workforce, outcomes and costs are meaningfully improved.
The bad news for health systems is that they have fallen behind payers offering such capabilities directly to subscribers. Healthcare organizations have lacked clear financial or regulatory incentives to disrupt the status quo. But entering 2026, opportunities to provide a better patient experience exist, and increasingly, patients will make choices based more on a frictionless experience rather than on traditional differentiators such as cost, access, or brand.
Sundar Subramanian, CEO, Zyter/TruCare
LinkedIn: Sundar Subramanian
Telehealth Becomes the Front Door to Rural Care, powered by AI Agents, Not Video Visits
In 2026, telehealth stops being the fallback option for rural communities and becomes the front door to the health system. The shift isn’t about more video visits. It’s about AI-orchestrated hybrid care that continuously manages a rural patient before, during, and after the encounter.
The breakthrough will come from integrating remote monitoring, automated triage agents, and virtual care teams into a seamless experience that closes care gaps and keeps clinicians informed in real time. With new CMS rural health flexibilities and a wave of omnichannel tools, telehealth finally becomes a viable operating model, not an emergency substitute.
The winners in rural health will be the systems that treat telehealth not as a channel, but as an operating system for continuous care.
Greg Tietjen, CEO, Revalia Bio
LinkedIn: Greg Tietjen
Human data as the new gold standard: The industry will shift from animal or synthetic proxies to human-first biological data as the foundation for therapeutic development.
New trust paradigm: Sponsors, regulators, and patients will align around human-based evidence as the most ethical and scientifically reliable foundation for medicine.
Dr. Nirav Vakharia, COO, Marathon Health
LinkedIn: Nirav Vakharia
Patient experience in 2026 won’t be measured by survey scores, it will be defined by whether we’ve removed the friction that makes healthcare feel like a burden. That means same-day access instead of week-long waits, transparent costs instead of surprise bills and scheduling that works around patients’ lives, not our systems.
But the real transformation will come from advanced primary care models that give patients 40 minutes with their provider instead of 12, focusing on prevention and relationships rather than just putting out fires. With technology handling administrative work and enabling proactive outreach, providers can finally focus on what actually drives outcomes: early intervention, continuity of care, and treating every patient with the attention we’d give a VIP.
The data is already clear, models, such as advanced primary care, consistently deliver higher satisfaction and lower total costs than traditional primary care. In 2026, the organizations still running 15-minute appointment mills will lose patients to those offering actual relationships and proactive care.
James Yersh, FCPA, FCA, President, PointClickCare
LinkedIn: James Yersh, FCPA, FCA
Health systems will begin to see more meaningful ROI from their digital patient experience initiatives as they shift from collecting information to generating actionable intelligence. When clinical, financial, and operational data are connected and synthesized in real time, care teams can respond faster, reduce administrative burden, and personalize interactions at every touchpoint. This type of intelligence will allow organizations to improve access, safety, and satisfaction while building a more proactive model of care that strengthens outcomes.