When it comes to how to stay healthy in 2026, digital health innovations are predicted to improve patient health in multiple ways. Keep reading to learn more about the digital health innovations that are expected for 2026.
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Artificial Intelligence (AI) Will Continue To Improve Imaging Technology
Artificial intelligence (AI) has already been implemented in the healthcare sector to some degree or another for years. However, it’s being speculated that the use of AI will be used in 2026 to further health innovation in the way of increasing the speed of scanning and to potentially reduce costs in radiology.
The ultimate goal of this innovation is to make scans more accessible to more patients. This seems to be a plausible goal given that this 2025 study found that AI improved accuracy and diagnostic times in radiology by as much as 90% between January of 2019 and February 2024.
Improvements in speed and accuracy could go a long way in improving patient health outcomes, both preventively and in regard to diagnostic results.
Contact us for more information about how Preventative Diagnostic Center’s low-dose CT scans incorporate AI to improve your results.
Wearable Health Monitors Are Set To Become New Prevention Tools
Wearable health monitors, such as Apple’s AirPods Pro 3 series (that now monitors your heart rate), or the Oura Ring that monitors a whole plethora of things, are expected to bridge the gap between consumer tool and diagnostic/prevention tool in 2026 by seeking FDA approval for certain functions, such as blood pressure monitoring.
Wearable technology, along with preventative scans, have the potential to give patients and doctors important insights into prevention for many health conditions, such as hypertension, heart disease, and more.
Remote And Virtual Care Will Become More Common
In 2026, digital health innovations are expected to expand and change how we approach healthcare. This 2025 Forbes article predicts that not only will telemedicine (having virtual appointments with your doctor over a computer or smartphone) become more common, but they are also predicting the implementation of virtual hospitals. Virtual hospitals are expected to give healthcare providers (and possibly even patients) access to specialists from all over the world. This would drastically improve patient accessibility.
Prevention And Wellness Will Gain Even More Traction
Between rising healthcare costs and a growing distrust in medicine, fueled by the Trump administrations “Making America Healthy Again” agenda, focus has been shifting toward preventive care and wellness over the years. This is expected to continue into 2026.
Health plans on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) Marketplaces are expected to rise an average of 26% in 2026 and this isn’t accounting for the possibility of the government allowing the ACA’s enhanced premium tax credits to expire before the end of the year, which would make prices rise even higher. In the wake of rising healthcare costs, patients deciding to take a more proactive role and monitor their own health comes at little to no surprise.
Using technology to track everything from symptoms, diet, physical activity, menstrual cycles, etc., and using apps empowered by AI to make suggestions on how to lose weight, lower your blood pressure, etc., will become increasingly common. Taking control of your own preventive care by skipping the referral from your doctor and getting affordable scans at Preventative Diagnostic Center can be another cost saving hack.
Whether you’re going into 2026 healthy as can be or you’re going into 2026 with a couple of health concerns, it’s always a good idea to take a proactive approach to your healthcare.
Considering that healthcare costs are only expected to rise over the next several years, talking to your doctor about getting preventative scans sooner rather than later could be a good idea.
Get scanned at Preventative Diagnostic Center for peace of mind and your best chance of early detection.