Health Misinformation and Trust

Amid rising interest in and use of artificial intelligence (AI) by individuals and businesses, most of the public (63%), including most AI users (56%), are not confident that AI chatbots provide accurate health information, a new KFF Health Misinformation Tracking Poll finds. The poll comes as AI chatbots such as…

In this Monitor, we explore how ongoing misinformation about the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines may affect the acceptance of new vaccine recommendations. First, we examine the false and misleading claims underlying the Kansas Attorney General’s lawsuit against Pfizer. We also discuss the CDC’s most recent vaccine.

In his latest column, KFF President and CEO Drew Altman discusses the difficulties of navigating the misinformation minefield, including the ways in which the news media can amplify or confront misinformation.

This edition focuses on intentionally false or misleading information online and its potential impact on public trust in health care. We share a recent report that exposed a covert U.S. military social media disinformation campaign in the Philippines that may have undermined public confidence in vaccines. We also examine how false claims about sunscreen and non-FDA-approved “miracle cures” may be discouraging people from taking important preventative measures and seeking legitimate medical treatment. Finally, we explore the rise of counterfeit diabetes and weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and the potential impact on trust in the pharmaceutical supply chain.

This issue of the Monitor focuses on recent Supreme Court decisions impacting health misinformation. We examine cases balancing free speech and platform regulation, the Court’s ruling on mifepristone access and public perceptions of social media moderation. We also explore COVID-19 narratives after Dr. Fauci’s congressional testimony and AI developments in predicting misinformation trends during pandemics.

From Drew Altman, Ph.D., KFF President and CEO, KFF Health News Founding Publisher As part of our new Initiative on Health Misinformation and Trust, I wanted to share with you a new report we launched today as a service for anyone and everyone interested in health misinformation and trust. It’s…

This first edition of the Health Misinformation Monitor explores misinformation about raw milk amid bird flu outbreaks on dairy farms, false vaccine narratives that continue to spread, and legal challenges against abortion pill reversal claims. Additionally, a growing number of states have required public schools to show fetal development videos that some have called biased and inaccurate. This Monitor report also provides a snapshot of new KFF misinformation polling on TikTok and discusses the early challenges faced by The World Health Organization’s new AI tool SARAH in providing accurate answers to health questions.

KFF’s Health Misinformation Tracking Poll shows that most adults who use the social media app TikTok report seeing health-related information or advice on the app. While fewer than half of users say they trust health information they see on the app, younger, Black and Hispanic users report higher levels of trust.

As rates of childhood vaccination decline and with measles on the rise again, a KFF Health Misinformation Tracking Poll, fielded in late February, examines the extent to which adults have heard and believe misinformation about the measles vaccine. The poll also examines the public’s views of the U.S. government and…

The latest KFF Health Misinformation Tracking Poll examines misinformation related to the measles vaccine and the public’s views of the U.S. government and social media companies’ role in moderating false claims online.