Americans age 65 and older who are insured by Medicare will have about 60 million telehealth visits annually between 2021 and 2023 – about 31 million for mental health and 29 million for other health problems. Find out what that is A new study I co-authored In Journal Annals of Internal Medicine.
We also found that people with Medicare coverage who used telehealth services were generally in poorer health and experienced more physical and functional limitations in their daily lives, compared to their counterparts who only had in-person medical appointments.
To get these numbers, we analyzed a national survey called Medical Expenditure Panel Surveywhich provides a nationally representative snapshot of how different groups of Americans use and receive health care. Based on our analysis, we developed national estimates of telehealth visits that reflect patterns of care for everyone insured through Medicare, a federal health insurance program primarily for people age 65 and older and some younger people with disabilities.
Why is it important?
In just a few years, telehealth has become a A central part of how healthcare is delivered in the United States – and it can play an important role in the health care system.
Before 2020, patients rarely received their healthcare virtually. about 1.7% of Medicare patients – 910,490 people – Telehealth used for medical appointments in 2019. These were Most of the patients are in rural areasAnd only certain clinics were authorized to offer it.
But during the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government expanded telehealth coverage to people insured by Medicare to make it easier for patients to maintain access to health care. Many insurance companies did too. The number of Medicare patients using telehealth services will increase to 53% in 2021, similar to About 28.3 million telehealth users at the peak of the pandemic.
While telehealth appointments overall — not just for people with Medicare coverage — have declined since the height of the pandemic, they remain. Much higher than pre-pandemic levelsAccording to data from Epic, the largest electronic medical records company in the United States
Act passed in 2021 Fixed Medicare’s coverage of telehealth for mental health services But coverage of access to care through telehealth for other types of health conditions, such as respiratory infections or diabetes, is set to end in 2027 — and policymakers Still deciding whether to continue it is
Our findings underscore the important role that telehealth has come to play in enabling older adults to access health care for all types of acute and chronic medical conditions. Emerging research suggests that it can Help them see providers more consistently without compromising quality of care compared to in-person visits.
Limiting access to telehealth services Access for older adults may reverse recent gains – Especially for patients who have geographic or health limitations that may make it challenging to get to an in-person appointment.
What is not yet known
Although our study sheds light on who uses telehealth and for what treatments, several important questions remain.
First, we did not explicitly examine quality of care. More research is needed to pin down Whether telehealth visits are comparable Conduct personal visits for treatment of various conditions. My colleagues and I plan to explore this issue for specific conditions such as diabetes.
Second, our analysis focused on individuals with Medicare coverage. Patterns may differ for younger patients or those with other types of health insurance.
However, our research aligned with others that is The use of telehealth has been examined since the pandemic.
Although no single study or report is perfect, the overall evidence suggests that telehealth can help improve access to care and appears to be a reasonable option—either by itself or as a supplement to in-person care for certain medical conditions.
Terence LiuAssistant Professor, University of Utah
Reprinted from this article the conversation Under Creative Commons license. read on Main article.
