It’s been widely reported that telehealth visits skyrocketed during the height of the pandemic when non-essential in-person interactions were shut down, and new research now shows that the volume of telehealth claim lines in the U.S. increased by more than 8,335 percent in April, year-over-year.
The research from FAIR Health's Monthly Telehealth Regional Tracker revealed that the number of telehealth claim lines—categorized as an individual service or procedure listed on an insurance claim—grew from 0.15 percent of total medical claim lines in April 2019 to 13.00 percent in April 2020. What’s more, the April 2019 to April 2020 increase of 8,336 percent almost doubled the 4,347 percent growth from March 2019 to March 2020. he data represent the privately insured population, excluding Medicare and Medicaid.
In the Northeast, the region of the country where the pandemic hit hardest in March and April—particularly in New York and New Jersey—telehealth growth was even more pronounced. Telehealth claim lines in the Northeast increased 26,209 percent from 0.07 percent of medical claim lines in April 2019 to 19.69 percent in April 2020. This increase was even larger than the already sizable 15,503 percent growth in the Northeast from March 2019 to March 2020, the data showed.
Federal and state regulations related to telehealth have been relaxed due to COVID-19, and private payers have had expanded access to telehealth. In addition, with fewer elective procedures occurring around the country due to widespread restrictions, the telehealth share of total medical claim lines was expected to increase, the researchers noted.
Nationally, and in all regions except the Midwest, telehealth had a greater share of medical claim lines in urban than rural areas in April 2019 and April 2020. In the Midwest, telehealth had a greater share in rural areas in April 2019, but the greater percentage shifted to urban areas in April 2020, according to the data.
Interestingly, the number one diagnosis of telehealth claims in April 2020 was mental health, accounting for 34 percent of all telehealth claim lines. The next highest category was joint and soft tissue diseases, though they accounted for just under 6 percent of all telehealth claim lines. Other conditions near the top of that list include hypertension, acute respiratory diseases and infections, and skin infections.
Notably, in the Midwest, diabetes mellitus appeared as one of the top five diagnoses in April 2020, a position it had not occupied in April 2019. The researchers suggested this is because in-person care was less accessible during the pandemic, meaning telehealth was being used increasingly to treat chronic conditions like diabetes as well as acute ones.
Separate research from Sage Growth Partners, which includes a survey of 500 U.S. healthcare leaders conducted at the end of May, finds that prior to COVID-19, 80 percent of hospitals provided less than 10 percent of their care virtually. Now, 85 percent of hospital executives cite virtual care as a key technology solution that's more critical now than a month ago, according to the findings.
However, the survey data did also reveal that 24 months from now, only 11 percent of hospital leaders predict that they will revert to pre-COVID-19 rates of virtual care. To that point, recent Commonwealth Fund data showed that telehealth visits made up about 14 percent of visits during the week of April 19, but that number had fallen to 7 percent in mid-June. Health policy researchers do emphasize that despite the decline, telehealth use is still substantially higher than it was pre-pandemic.
