Doctor on Demand: The Future of Telehealth Services
What does Doctor on Demand cost people with and without insurance coverage, and is it better than in-person appointments?
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The rise of telemedicine has been one with consistent growth as consumers demand increased access and flexibility.
Furthermore, in the midst of a world created in the wake of COVID-19, easy and safe access to good health care is paramount and the demand for telemedicine has never been higher:
Telemedicine Adoption
- Hospitals are increasingly using video interactions, in 2018 there had been 131 million virtual interactions with consumers. (AHIP, 2019)
- Telehealth’s most popular mediums are telephone (59%), text messaging (29%), and email (11%). (AHIP, 2018)
- Millennials are twice as likely to use telemedicine than Baby Boomers. (EBRI, 2018)
- One–third of respondents said they preferred a telehealth visit over a traditional in-person visit. (NCBI, 2016)
- Nine in 10 respondents age over 40 expressed they would feel comfortable using telemedicine to receive care. (NORC, 2018)
- The average number of telehealth visits per patient is 1.3 visits per year. (Yamamoto, 2014)
- The most common telehealth diagnoses are sinusitis, cold/flu, and urinary tract infections. (Yamamoto, 2014)
- 85% of physicians use telehealth or a mix of in-person and virtual care. (AMA, 2022)
- 93% conduct live, interactive videos with patients, whereas 69% conduct audio-only visits. (AMA, 2022)
- 56% report they will continue utilizing telehealth in their practices. (AMA, 2022)
- Clinicians use telehealth across many aspects of care, including treatment or therapy (77%), screening, assessment, or diagnosis (72%), follow-up care (70%), continuous monitoring (53%), and intake or triage (41%). (AMA, 2022)
- Many services are provided via telehealth, including medical management (72%), chronic disease management (68%), specialty care (49%), mental/behavioral health (44%), urgent care (37%), preventative care (37%), and other services. (AMA, 2022)
- 63% of physicians believe telehealth visits are an excellent supplement to in-person care. (AMA, 2022)
- Most telemedicine physician users are between 30 and 50 years old. (Doximity, 2022)
- 67% of patients participate in a virtual health visit at least once a year. Among people with chronic illnesses, the percentage rises to 80%. (Doximity, 2022)
- 59% of patients prefer to use their mobile devices, whereas 38% prefer to use their computers for virtual doctor visits. 73% of patients plan to continue receiving care virtually after the pandemic. (Doximity, 2022)
- Women use telemedicine more than men, at 42% and 31%, respectively. (CDC, 2022)
- People 65 and older are the most active users of telemedicine at 43%, whereas only 29.4% of people between 19 and 29 use telehealth services. (CDC, 2022)
Telemedicine and COVID-19 Statistics
- The number of virtual care visits in 2020 is expected to reach 1 billion, including 900 million virtual visits related to COVID-19. (Forrester, 2020)
- Some virtual health care providers say they have had more than 15.000 video requests per day. (CNBC, 2020)
- Around 80 million virtual visits related to mental health are predicted this year. (Webwire, 2020)
- As of January 2020, only 24% of US health care organizations had an existing virtual health care system. (Forrester, 2020)
- In 2020, there was a 154% increase in telehealth use in the US due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (McKinsey & Company, 2021)
- 73% of patients plan to continue receiving care virtually after the pandemic. (Doximity, 2022)
Telemedicine Convenience
- 83% of the time patient issues were resolved with just a telehealth visit. (Yamamoto, 2014)
- Top three benefits for patients are improved patient access to care (66%), patient satisfaction (52%), and improved communication (45%). (Deloitte, 2018)
- 78% of patients requiring continuous prescriptions refilled would like to use video visits instead of in-person visits. (AmericanWell, 2017)
- 76% of U.S. hospitals connect with patients at a distance through video and other technology. (AHA, 2019)
- 60% of clinicians say that telehealth has enabled them to offer high-quality care. (AMA, 2022)
- Half of physicians say that telehealth has improved their professional satisfaction. (AMA, 2022)
- More than 80% report that telehealth enables better patient care access. (AMA, 2022)
- 62% feel patients are more satisfied with the service since offering telehealth services. (AMA, 2022)
- Over 67% report that telemedicine made it easier to build trust with patients. (Doximity, 2022)
Telemedicine Financial Impact
- By doing a telehealth visit instead of an in-person visit consumers saved an average of $100. (AHIP, 2019)
- Only one-third of adults age over 40 have accounted for future medicine costs. (LongTermCarePoll)
- And yet, the majority (65%) believe they will require medical care someday. (LongTermCarePoll)
- Telemedicine could save the United States $4.28 billion on healthcare spending per year. (HealthAffairs, 2016)
- The global telemedicine market was valued at $45 billion in 2019 and is surpass $170 billion by 2025. (GMInsights, 2019)
- In 2022, the global telemedicine market was valued at $83.5 billion and is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 25% from 2023 to 2030. (Grand View Research, 2023)
- 44% of clinicians agree that telehealth decreased the costs of care. (AMA, 2022)
Concerns About Telemedicine
- Half of respondents were very concerned that telemedicine could lead to lower-quality care. (NORC, 2018)
- 20% of Americans live in rural areas with shortages of physicians and health care specialists. (HealthAffairs, 2016)
- Top three physician concerns about telemedicine is medical errors (36%), access to technology (35%), and data security (33%). (Deloitte, 2018)
- According to physicians, the most significant barriers to virtual care are limited patient access to technology, limited digital literacy in the patient mix, and limited patient access to broadband internet. (AMA, 2022)
- The most significant challenges to offering telehealth services are the rollback of COVID-19 waivers, coverage, and payment policies, the lack of insurer coverage of telehealth services, the low or no reimbursement, the technology challenges for the patient population, and the licensure in additional states. (AMA, 2022)
Traditional Healthcare vs. Telemedicine
- It takes an average of 18.4 days from scheduling to an in-person appointment. (Washington Post, 2014)
- The average wait time for most telemedicine visit is 20 minutes long. (eVisit)
- The average in-person visit is 121 minutes long. (Harvard, 2015)
- The average virtual visit is 20 minutes long (eVisit)
Employers and Telemedicine
- 51% of employers will offer more virtual solutions in 2020 with musculoskeletal and mental health topping the list. (Business Group of Health, 2020)
- 50% of employers see virtual solutions having a significant impact on health care. (Business Group of Health, 2020)
- Majority of employers (96%) plan to make telehealth services available. (HealthCareITNews, 2017)
- Top priority for employers in 2020 is the implementation of more virtual care solutions (51%). (Business Group of Health, 2020)
- Almost all (96%) of the nation’s large employers will provide insurance coverage for telehealth in 2019 (AHIP, 2019)
- 74% of employers believe that virtual health will impact how care is delivered in the future. (Business Group on Health, 2022)
- 57% plan to add more virtual health solutions in 2023. (Business Group on Health, 2022)
- Almost all large companies offer traditional telemedicine services. (Mercer, 2022)
- More than a fourth of large employers offer a virtual behavioral healthcare network, whereas 25% offer targeted virtual health solutions. (Mercer, 2022)
Telemedicine will continue to play an important role in healthcare for the short-term due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which also hastened its long-term adoption. For employers, telemedicine companies can help provide telemedicine as a benefit to your employees: A benefit employees are quickly coming to expect in our rapidly changing world.
Written by shortlister editorial team
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