4A's

Healthcare is reaching an inflection point. In 2025, U.S. healthcare spending reached $5.6 trillion, accounting for nearly one-fifth of the economy. At the same time, healthcare communications are becoming increasingly complex as agencies navigate evolving regulations, AI, data privacy concerns and changing consumer expectations. Perhaps most importantly, healthcare itself is changing. Consumers are taking a greater role in decisions about their care, treatment and finances.

An emerging wave of state-level legislation has seen Illinois, Utah, and Kentucky enact new taxes targeting digital advertising, social media platforms, and data brokering services. Because federal courts have blocked direct challenges to new state digital advertising taxes, litigation for similar laws are currently grinding through state court systems.

We’ll be at Cannes all week, in sessions, in conversations, at tables we were invited to and a few we’re hosting ourselves. We can’t bring everyone into every room, but we will bring the room back to you. If you’re on the Croisette, we hope we get to meet. And if you’re not, stay tuned. We’ll share what we’re hearing, what’s resonating and what it means for agencies. Monday, June 22 12 PM Panel: The Health Consumer Has Spoken.

Move Expands Advocacy, Member Offerings and Mission to Support the Future of Consumer-First Healthcare Communications New York, NY —  June 1, 2026 —The 4As, the leading U.S.-based advertising trade association serving more than 600 member agencies nationwide, today announced that its subsidiary, the Coalition for Healthcare Communication (CHC), will rebrand as 4As Health, effective immediately.

The 4As is partnering with Jesse Strawbridge and the Boston area Hunting Club to support agency owners, agency-side sales professionals, and sole practitioners/freelancers in a night of collaboration, inspiration, and networking. We’re pleased to welcome Christian Banach to the stage. From Reactive to Proactive: The New Model for Agency Growth By the time an RFP hits your inbox, the agency that’s going to win has usually already been in the conversation for months.

On Star Wars Day, agency leaders gathered to share perspectives on AI at Meta’s NYC offices in midtown Manhattan. The 4As convened independent shops, hold-co talent and platform builders for a frank conversation about AI in the agency business — what’s working, what’s hype and what’s about to break. The event traded in candor rather than consensus. Four themes carried across every session and read together, they sketch a coherent picture of where the industry is, and where we are heading.

Being “new here” is way more fun when you’re not doing it alone. Join our virtual networking session, New Here? Same. On Tuesday, June 18th at 5 pm ET for a casual hangout made for early-career agency professionals who want to meet more people across the industry (but without the awkward networking energy… I promise!). You might meet your new favorite agency bestie. You might find your industry twin. You might leave with a $50 gift card. Honestly, all strong outcomes.

Agency life is chaotic enough without battling disconnected tools, unpredictable margins, and scope creep! Join us for a highly actionable webinar where we’ll explore how to build an AI-powered operating model that actually scales. If you’re looking to streamline your tech stack and boost profitability, this session is for you.

Advertising has spent the last decade chasing precision while overlooking one of the oldest and most reliable predictors of consumer behavior: proximity. The industry built increasingly sophisticated ways to identify audiences, optimize impressions and automate delivery. Yet one of the strongest indicators of whether advertising drives action remains underweighted in modern media planning: how near a household is to where conversion can actually happen.

A recent ANA study shows the need for greater transparency between the two sides When Jared Belsky, CEO and co-founder of digital marketing agency Acadia, announced in February that he had returned rebates from publishers to 53 clients, he was sounding an alarm to the marketing and advertising industry. Belsky wrote an op-ed in Adweek calling out other agencies for not refunding rebates while launching a website to help marketers understand the issue.