Updated National Survey Trends in Telehealth Utilization and Modality
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE): Updated National Survey Trends in Telehealth Utilization and Modality
This report updates prior findings on national trends of telehealth use through an analysis using the Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey data from April 2021 through August 2022. Compared to earlier periods in the pandemic, telehealth utilization was lower during the study period (April 14, 2021 through August 8, 2022), but continued to remain above pre-pandemic levels. The highest rates of telehealth visits were among those covered by Medicaid (28.3 percent) and Medicare (26.8 percent), individuals who are Black (26.1 percent), and those earning less than $25,000 (26.4 percent). The report also emphasized the importance of audio-only telehealth for addressing disparities in populations and across insurance types.
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Open in new tab The Use of Telemedicine in Medical Education and Patient Care
Cureus: The Use of Telemedicine in Medical Education and Patient Care
The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated and expanded the adoption of telemedicine globally. This allowed telemedicine to engage medical students in patient care and ensured continuity of care for vulnerable patients. This article reviews the major facilitators and barriers any medical and educational institution must address when using telemedicine, and explores future promises telemedicine has for medical education.
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Older Patients Are Comfortable With Telehealth and Prefer It as an Option
Oncology Nursing News: Older Patients Are Comfortable With Telehealth and Prefer It as an Option
A survey by Independa, a health care technology company, found that adults older than 70 years had a high comfort level with telehealth and preferred having it as an option. Of those surveyed, 93 percent of adults older than 70 years said they would like a telehealth option compared with 84 percent who said the same thing in 2022. Approximately 86 percent of older adults had a telehealth appointment in the past year compared with 75 percent in 2021. Of those who had a telehealth appointment, 85 percent enjoyed the experience compared with 74 percent in 2020. Findings indicate a new norm to deliver more flexible and personalized health and wellness options for older adults.
Performance Measures for Physicians Providing Clinical Care Using Telemedicine: A Position Paper From the American College of Physicians
Annals of Internal Medicine: Performance Measures for Physicians Providing Clinical Care Using Telemedicine: A Position Paper From the American College of Physicians
The American College of Physicians (ACP) published a policy paper which details new recommendations to ensure that measures developed to gauge telemedicine services are evidence-based, methodologically sound and clinically meaningful. The focus of this paper is telemedicine services provided in an ambulatory care environment, including via interactive audio and video telecommunications systems. ACP recommends that:
- Performance measures used to evaluate quality of care provided by a physician at a telemedicine visit should adhere to the same principles and criteria as for an in-person ambulatory care visit.
- Performance measures be evaluated to determine whether care delivered in a telemedicine setting should be included in the specifications, with careful consideration of how this might impact measure actionability or lead to unintended consequences.
- Mechanisms be put in place so that physicians, and their information systems, can have access to information generated at a telemedicine visit before a performance measure is used to evaluate quality of care.
- Performance measure testing must be conducted for a measure deemed appropriate to evaluate quality of care provided by a physician at a telemedicine visit.
- Telemedicine visits be incorporated into measure attribution logic (for example, individual physician, group practice level, and health plan).
- Performance measures used to evaluate quality of care provided by a physician at a telemedicine visit should not marginalize under-resourced communities already affected by the “digital divide”.
Patient Monitoring Devices Industry to Rise with Strong Demand for Remote Patient Monitoring
Grand View Research: Patient Monitoring Devices Industry to Rise with Strong Demand for Remote Patient Monitoring
Remote patient monitoring (RPM) has amassed popularity as a promising technology to minimize the chances of hospitalization. Grand View Research released its Patient Monitoring Devices Industry Data Book, 2023-2030 and found that remote monitoring has become instrumental in minimizing the chances of errors with patients’ inclination to share and record information.
Changes in In-Person, Audio-Only, and Video Visits in California’s Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), 2019-2022
JAMA Network: Changes in In-Person, Audio-Only, and Video Visits in California’s Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs), 2019-2022
A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that audio-only telehealth continued to be used at higher rates than video visits in safety net clinics in California. Prior to March 2020, FQHCs rarely received reimbursement for telehealth services delivered into patients’ homes. However, pandemic-related regulatory waivers allowed many payers to reimburse FQHCs at the same rate for in-person, audio-only, and video visits. Most visits delivered by California FQHCs in 2020 were audio only. California FQHCs increased or maintained their visit volume with the transition to telehealth despite workforce loss. Telehealth likely improved the productivity of remaining staff.
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Alliance Leads Letter to Congressional Appropriators to Support Telehealth Resource Centers
The Alliance for Connected Care led a letter asking Congressional Appropriators to include a $14 million request for the Telehealth Resource Centers (TRC) program at the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) in FY2024 appropriations.
This increase in funding would provide a critical boost to the TRCs, which saw an 800% increase in demand for telehealth assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic. The TRCs need at least $14M in funding in FY24 to ensure that each TRC (regional and national) can receive at least $1M each to continue to meet this demand and ensure that telehealth questions and issues can continue to be addressed.
To read the final letter, see below or click here.
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Concerns Align on the DEA Telemedicine Rule
Over 35,000 Americans provided comments on the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) proposed rule, “Telemedicine Prescribing of Controlled Substances When the Practitioner and the Patient Have Not Had a Prior In-Person Medical Evaluation.”
In comment letters responding to the DEA’s proposed rule, hundreds of key stakeholders highlighted the need for a special registration for telemedicine and the dangerous impact on patient access the proposed rule has on millions of patients.
Read a snapshot of the comments below or here.
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How Primary Care Physicians Experience Telehealth
The Commonwealth Fund: How Primary Care Physicians Experience Telehealth
According to a Commonwealth Fund survey of primary care physicians in 10 countries, telehealth platforms have been relatively easy to implement, and most clinicians are satisfied with the technology. In at least half the countries surveyed, including the U.S., most physicians said telehealth improved timeliness of care, offset potential financial losses from COVID, and allowed them to assess mental and behavioral health needs.
Preference for Future Telehealth Use Does Not Exceed That of In-Person Care
mHealth Intelligence: Preference for Future Telehealth Use Does Not Exceed That of In-Person Care
Research published in the Practice of Medicine described that although telehealth gained a high level of approval and application throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, most users prefer to return to in-person care in the future, largely due to a lack of physical exams and perceived lower quality. Researchers conducted two nationally representative surveys to gather information surrounding physician and patient perceptions of video-based telehealth. Overall, 90 percent of physicians indicated that video visits went well during the pandemic, and 86 percent felt that this modality was critical in the process of connecting with patients. Based on these survey findings, researchers concluded that despite the sufficiency and relatively high level of acceptance of telehealth throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, most patients and physicians are partial to in-person care.