Patients who rely heavily on telehealth for primary care may experience gaps in care, according to a new study.
Researchers at UW Medicine in Seattle followed 744,599 U.S. military veterans who used Veterans Health Administration primary care for three or more visits, either in person or via video or phone. The study, published in JAMA Network Open Feb. 17, found that care quality remained comparable to in-person visits when telehealth accounted for a small or moderate portion of total visits. However, patients who chose virtual visits more than 50% of the time had lower rates of flu vaccination, statin adherence and depression screening.
The findings mark the first national study to assess whether the proportion of telehealth visits affects quality of care, according to a Feb. 25 news release from UW Medicine. The COVID-19 pandemic drove widespread adoption of telehealth, with utilization among physicians rising from 15% in 2019 to more than 86% in 2021.
