Apple Health Medications: how to bring your medication list into Sam from iOS 26
Apple Health medications in Sam: Apple keeps sending the reminders, the import works from iOS 26, and imported medications stay out of the doctor report.
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You keep your medications in Apple Health and wonder whether they can join the medication list in Sam. Apple reminds you, and you log each dose there. From iOS 26, Sam can read that list with your permission and show it to you. This post covers Apple Health medications: what Apple does, how the import works and what then shows up in the doctor report.
What can the medication tracker in Apple Health do?
The Health app in iOS has a Medications feature. You add medicines, vitamins and supplements. You set times or a repeating schedule, and you log each dose as taken or skipped. It also shows a reminder when a dose is due. Apple describes it as adding medications to track and manage their intake in the Health app.
How do you import Apple Health medications into Sam?
From iOS 26, apps can read the medication list in Apple Health. The iOS and iPadOS 26 release notes list a new HealthKit interface through which apps read medications and dose events. Sam reads medications and doses through it and never writes back to Apple Health.
You start the import with "Import from Apple Health" in the onboarding or on the Medications screen. In Apple's sharing sheet you pick which medications Sam may read, and Sam reads their doses with them. Sam then lists them with an "In Apple Health" label. Their doses show under "Taken today" and in the history. You keep managing the list in Apple Health, log the doses there, and Apple Health sends the medication reminders. Sam does not remind you of these medications, because Apple keeps their schedule.
Do imported Apple Health medications appear in the doctor report?
No. A program in Sam is its own diary for one condition, with a monthly questionnaire and a doctor report as a PDF. The doctor report shows only medications you added in Sam and linked to that program. Apple keeps the schedule of imported medications, so they stay out of the report. That holds even when, under "What is it for?", you assign one to a program. It then shows in the program in Sam, but not in the report.
To have a medication in your program's doctor report, add it in Sam and link it to the program. It then shows up with its schedule and, depending on the program, the doses you logged. From then on you log its doses in Sam, and Sam reminds you when it has a schedule. More about the report and what belongs in a medication record is in Medication log: template or app.
Does Apple Health show drug-interaction information?
Apple's Health app offers drug-interaction information. According to Apple, that information is available only in the United States. Readers elsewhere will not get an interaction check inside Apple Health. Sam does not check interactions either.
Questions about interactions, dosing or a missed dose are for your doctor, your pharmacist or the patient leaflet. How reminders on iPhone help is covered in Pill reminder on iPhone: what helps when you forget. It also says who to ask about a missed dose.
See your Apple Health doses in Sam and add medications for the doctor report
You keep Apple's reminders and still see your doses in Sam. You add in Sam whatever belongs in the doctor report.
- Instead of two separate apps: Sam reads the medications you share, with their doses, from Apple Health. It shows them in the same app as your symptom diary.
- Instead of double reminders: Apple keeps reminding you of imported medications, and Sam writes nothing back to Apple Health.
- Instead of a report without medication: you add a medication in Sam and link it to your program. It then appears in that program's doctor report with its plan and, depending on the program, its doses.
The medication list in Sam stays personal. Sam records and reminds. Imported medications stay out of the doctor report, and Sam does not judge your doses.
Try Sam for freeSam is a wellness companion, not a medical device. The app does not diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult qualified professionals for medical decisions.
Related reading
- Medication log: template or app
- Comparison: Sam and Apple Health
- Pill reminder on iPhone: what helps when you forget
- Medication list template or app: what to bring
Sources
Updated: October 2026
- Apple Support: Add and log medications with iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch
- Apple Support (German): Mit dem iPhone, dem iPad und der Apple Watch Medikamente hinzufügen und protokollieren
- Apple Developer: iOS and iPadOS 26 Release Notes, HealthKit
- Apple Developer: WWDC25 - Meet the HealthKit Medications API
More on recording and taking it along
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I bring my Apple Health medications into Sam?+
Yes, from iOS 26 you can bring your Apple Health medications into Sam. Choose "Import from Apple Health" in the onboarding or on the Medications screen in Sam. In Apple's sharing sheet you pick which medications Sam may read, and Sam reads their doses with them. Sam only reads; it never writes back to Apple Health.
Does Apple Health have a medication reminder?+
Yes, the Health app sends a reminder when a dose is due. It has a Medications feature where you add medicines, vitamins and supplements, set times or a repeating schedule, and log each dose as taken or skipped. With your permission, Sam can read the medications you share and their doses.
Which iOS version do I need to import Apple Health medications?+
You need iOS 26 or later. Earlier iOS versions do not give apps like Sam access to the HealthKit medication list. Apple lists the new medication API in the iOS and iPadOS 26 release notes for developers. You start the import in Sam, in the onboarding or on the Medications screen.
Do imported Apple Health medications appear in Sam's doctor report?+
No, imported medications stay out of a program's doctor report. The report shows only medications you added in Sam and linked to that program. Apple keeps the schedule and reminders of imported medications, which is why they are left out. That also holds when you assign one to a program.
Does Apple Health show drug interactions outside the US?+
No. According to Apple, its drug-interaction information is available only in the United States, and the Health app does not show it elsewhere. Sam does not check interactions either. Questions about interactions, dosing or a missed dose are for your doctor, pharmacist or the leaflet.
Can I use Apple Health and Sam together?+
Yes, you can use both. Apple Health keeps the imported medications and sends the reminders, and Sam reads the doses and shows them with your medications in Sam. Medications you add in Sam and link to a program appear in that program's doctor report. You decide where you record.
How do I get a medication into my program's doctor report?+
Add the medication in Sam and choose your program under "What is it for?". You can also assign an imported medication to a program there. It still stays out of the doctor report, because Apple keeps its schedule. Sam links nothing automatically.