Telehealth visits have been on the steady decline since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, but remain well above pre-pandemic levels, Politico reported Oct. 11.
Five telehealth trends to know:
- According to CDC data, 1 in 5 adults say they have had a virtual visit in the previous month.
- Older Americans are more likely to use telehealth.
- Primary care visits using telehealth are on the rise. In 2020, telehealth visits made up 8 percent of primary care doctor visits for Medicare beneficiaries versus 3 percent for specialists.
- When the Omicron variant was at its peak, telehealth usage began to soar once again among Medicare and Medicaid patients in the first quarter of 2022.
- Patients with chronic conditions are twice as likely to use telehealth.