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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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)
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.
