Where Healthcare Innovates in 2026: The U.S. Events Shaping What’s Next

As in-person events continue to reclaim their place post-pandemic, they’ve reinforced something the healthcare industry knows well: meaningful progress happens when people, ideas, and decisions meet face to face.

In healthcare, innovation unfolds at the intersection of technology, regulation, clinical reality, and system-level execution. Industry events remain one of the few spaces where these forces converge in real time—bringing together providers, payers, healthtech companies, policymakers, investors, and technology leaders.

Yet, with an increasingly crowded healthcare events landscape, deciding where to invest time and attention has become a strategic decision, not simply a calendar exercise.

This curated overview highlights the U.S. healthcare events shaping 2026—offering a structured view of where the most relevant conversations around digital health, AI, health IT, medtech, and healthcare transformation will take place throughout the year.

Events 2026 | U.S. Healthcare Industry

January

JPM Annual Healthcare Conference
San Francisco | Jan 12–15

The most influential healthcare event globally, bringing together biotech, pharma, healthtech leaders, investors, and C-level executives. A key forum for understanding investment trends, innovation priorities, and the strategic direction of the healthcare industry.

February

Connected Health & Fitness Summit
Los Angeles | Feb 18–20

A conference focused on connected health, wellness, and digital fitness solutions. Explores wearables, patient engagement platforms, preventive care technologies, and data-driven health models shaping modern healthcare experiences.

VIVE
Los Angeles | Feb 22–25

A premium healthcare innovation event connecting providers, payers, startups, and technology leaders. Designed to foster collaboration, strategic partnerships, and the adoption of scalable digital health solutions.

March

HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition
Las Vegas | Mar 9–12

The world’s leading Health IT conference, focused on interoperability, data infrastructure, cybersecurity, AI, and large-scale digital transformation across healthcare systems.

April

Health 2.0 Conference
Las Vegas | Apr 7–9

A global platform bringing together stakeholders from healthcare, pharma, biotech, wellness, and medtech to discuss innovation and emerging technologies. Topics include AI in healthcare, patient safety, personalized medicine, digital health, and the future of care delivery.

Digital Healthcare Innovation Summit
Boston | Apr 27–28

A boutique, invitation-only summit convening investors, C-suite executives, startups, and policymakers. Focused on how innovation and strategic investment are reshaping healthcare and where capital and technology are converging next.

May

Reuters Events: Digital Health USA
Chicago | May 21

A strategic conference centered on accelerating digital health adoption in real-world settings. Covers AI implementation, data and infrastructure challenges, workforce enablement, and proven case studies from across the healthcare ecosystem.

June

Digital Health & AI Innovation Summit
Boston | Jun 8–9

A focused event for healthcare leaders exploring the practical application of AI across the sector. Brings together executives, clinicians, scientists, and innovators to discuss scalable AI solutions, industry impact, and future-ready healthcare systems.

Healthcare Supply Chain Technology Summit
Massachusetts | Jun 11–12

A specialized summit exploring how emerging technologies are transforming the healthcare supply chain, including AI-driven forecasting, cybersecurity in supplier networks, digital transformation, operational efficiency, and cost optimization through real-world case studies.

October

The MedTech Conference
Boston | Oct 18–21

The leading global conference for the medtech industry, hosted by AdvaMed. Offers in-depth education, executive networking, and insights into regulatory, technological, and market trends shaping medical technology innovation.

November

HLTH
Las Vegas | Nov 12–15

A large-scale healthcare innovation event convening the full health ecosystem, including providers, payers, pharma, startups, investors, and policymakers. Focused on digital health, AI, patient experience, and the future of healthcare systems at scale.

How to Choose the Right Healthcare Events in 2026

Not all healthcare events serve the same purpose. The real value lies in aligning conferences with your role within the ecosystem and the challenges you’re solving.

For healthtech builders and product teams, events centered on digital health platforms, AI-driven care, and patient experience provide valuable insight into innovation, compliance requirements, and real-world adoption.

For scaling organizations and operators, conferences focused on interoperability, cybersecurity, data infrastructure, and enterprise integration offer practical guidance for implementing and scaling technology within complex healthcare systems.

For enterprise leaders, payers, and policymakers, large-scale forums that bring together the full ecosystem deliver system-level perspectives on regulation, care delivery models, and long-term transformation.

Looking Ahead

As healthcare continues to evolve, events remain a powerful signal—not only of emerging trends, but of what is becoming necessary across the system.

2026 will be defined by how effectively innovation moves from vision to execution. Understanding where these conversations take place is a critical step toward building with clarity, alignment, and impact.

This overview is designed to help healthcare builders, operators, and decision-makers navigate the year ahead with focus—choosing the conversations and ecosystems that truly matter.