The agenda for Health Datapalooza 2026 is coming together around a set of practical questions about how data and technology are changing health care—and what it will take to make those changes work.
The opening plenary, “Funding the Future of Healthcare AI: Evidence, ROI, and Policy,” will tackle a question that is becoming increasingly difficult to avoid: How do health care organizations justify investing in AI when the evidence base is still developing—and who should pay to generate the evidence needed to support responsible adoption? Leaders from health systems, industry, and policy will examine the economics of AI, including return on investment, reimbursement, and the policy implications of changes to programs such as CMS’ New Technology Add-On Payment.
Other sessions will examine related questions from different angles:
- Who owns health data, and who bears the risk? The afternoon plenary, “Whose Data, Whose Risk?”, will explore the relationship between privacy, cybersecurity, transparency, patient trust, and innovation. Speakers will consider how policy and practice can protect patient information while supporting the use of data in care delivery, public health, and research.
- How can data become useful to policymakers and the public? In “Data Partnerships to Advance Healthcare Policy and Practice,” speakers will examine how researchers, policymakers, strategists, and product designers worked together to turn complex data on health care costs and affordability into interactive tools that people can actually use.
- Can AI prevent fraud before public dollars leave the door? “Beyond Pay-and-Chase” will look at the move toward real-time, AI-driven approaches to fraud prevention and the implications for state Medicaid programs.
- What can rural health teach the rest of the country? The closing plenary, “Solve It in Rural, Solve It Everywhere: What Data Can Do When Community, Connection, and Care Have to Align,” will consider how rural communities are using technology and innovation to keep people connected to care—and what those models can reveal about challenges shared across the health system, from fragmented care to payment complexity.
Together, these sessions reflect a broader conversation about the future of health data and technology: not simply what new tools can do, but how we evaluate them, pay for them, govern them, and ensure they deliver value for the people and communities they are meant to serve. More sessions will be announced as the Health Datapalooza 2026 agenda continues to take shape.