July 1, 2026- Vizient® announced the release of the 2026 Impact of Change® forecast, highlighting how shifts in care delivery, patient complexity, and site-of-care access challenges are reshaping healthcare utilization and will change the structure of the healthcare continuum. The 10-year forecast projects continued growth in outpatient services as more care shifts to ambulatory sites, creating new challenges for capacity planning, workforce strategy and care coordination. Additionally, artificial intelligence, virtual health, and emerging technologies are reshaping how organizations plan for and deliver care.
The forecast finds that demand is increasingly shaped by an aging population, rising chronic disease prevalence, and continued migration of care to ambulatory settings. Home health volumes are expected to increase 13% over the next five years as services shift beyond traditional hospital settings. At the same time, as insurance coverage contracts, more patients are expected to delay preventive care and rely on emergency departments, helping drive a projected 6% increase in adult visits over the next decade.
Read more about the Impact of Change® from Vizient.