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Docs say medical misinformation is on the rise, but AI isn't behind it

Physicians say social media is the biggest contributor to the rise in medical misinformation, not patient use of AI chatbots.

Sara Heath
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Published: 31 Aug 2026

Physicians increasingly say their patients are influenced by medical misinformation, but the culprit isn't AI as one might think.

Rather, social media, influencers, news coverage and even government health agencies are impacting patients' understanding of health topics, according to a new survey from The Physician's Foundation, obtained via email.

Patients are more susceptible to medical misinformation than ever before, with 31% of physician respondents saying their patients are influenced by falsehoods a great deal. Another 38% said their patients are at least moderately influenced by medical misinformation.

That compares to 24% and 37% of physicians, respectively, who said the same last year.

These findings align with the surge in patient AI use, particularly chatbots. Industry leaders have said overreliance on AI chatbots is a significant patient safety risk, particularly because these bots can provide inaccurate medical advice and even peddle medical misinformation.

But, according to the survey, AI isn't driving the medical misinformation trend. Only a third of physicians said AI frequently contributes to medical misinformation, while 49% said it sometimes does.

Instead, social media (85%), word of mouth (74%) and influencers (74%) are considered the biggest peddlers of medical misinformation, with 48% of physicians agreeing that social media is the most significant driver of misinformation. By comparison, only 3% said AI chatbots are the biggest driver.

Another 58% of respondents said news coverage often or very often perpetuates medical falsehoods, while 57% said the same of search engines.

Notably, 28% of physicians said government health agencies, such as HHS, CMS and the CDC, very often spread medical misinformation, while 39% said they sometimes do. This is troubling, as federal agencies are intended to be a source of truth for patients and healthcare consumers.

Medical misinformation threatens outcomes

Regardless of the source, medical misinformation puts a lot of pressure on the patient-provider relationship. Nearly two-thirds (65%) of physicians said medical misinformation has a moderate or major impact on their ability to provide quality care to their patients, up from 57% who said the same in 2025.

And when more patients believe medical falsehoods, or at least are exposed to them, it can complicate certain clinical outcomes.

Two-thirds of providers said medical misinformation often increases patients' anxiety, while another 29% said it sometimes does. Medical misinformation can also contribute to medication/treatment nonadherence (49%), lead to refusals of recommended care plans (45%) and requests for unnecessary tests or procedures (43%).

Perhaps most alarming is the 34% of physicians who said medical misinformation has often led to a breakdown in patient-physician trust.

Equipping docs to dispel medical misinformation

Still, patients really trust their doctors, separate surveys show, and that trusting relationship puts doctors in a good position to combat medical misinformation and support better-informed patients.

By and large, physicians are up for the challenge, with 95% saying they feel at least somewhat confident that they can identify and correct misinformation that patients bring into appointments. Another 87% said they are somewhat or very confident that they have the tools and support to engage with patients who are skeptical about modern medicine, such as vaccine safety.

But healthcare organizations could do more to support their physicians in debunking medical myths.

Although 81% said they are somewhat or very confident they have the right patient education resources within their practices to address medical misinformation, they're short on time. A third of physician respondents said they aren't confident that they have enough time during appointments to address medical misinformation. Half (52%) said they are somewhat or fairly confident they have enough time, while only 14% were very confident.

Physicians are also worried about their patients' online media literacy skills, with 43% saying they aren't at all confident that their patients know how to access safe, reliable and accurate health information online. Only 48% said they were somewhat confident, while 9% said they were very confident.

Sara Heath is an executive editor at Xtelligent Healthcare Media, where she covers patient engagement, healthcare policy and health IT.

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