JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Telemedicine expanded during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, though use differed by age, sex, race/ethnicity and income. It is unclear if high telehealth use or inequities persisted late into the pandemic.

Objective:

Evaluate the prevalence of, inequities in, and primary reasons for telehealth visits a year after telemedicine expansion.

Methods:

We used cross-sectional data from the 2022 Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS 6), the first cycle with data on telemedicine. 4,889 English and Spanish-speaking US adults (≥18 years) were included in this study. The primary outcomes were telehealth visit attendance in the 12 months prior to March 7 – November 8, 2022 and primary reason for most recent telehealth visit. We evaluated sociodemographic and clinical predictors of telehealth visit attendance and primary reason for most recent telehealth visit via Poisson regression. Analyses were weighted according to HINTS standards.

Results:

We included 4,889 participants (mean age 48.3±17.5 years; 50% women; 65% White). Among US adults, 39% reported having a telehealth visit in the prior year. Telehealth visit attendance rates were similar across age, race/ethnicity, and income. However, individuals with a telehealth visit were more likely to be women (aPR: 1.23, 95% CI: 1.08-1.41), college graduates/postgraduates (aPR: 1.26, 95% CI: 1.07-1.49), covered by health insurance (aPR: 1.64, 95% CI: 1.13-2.37), and married/cohabitating (aPR: 1.14, 95% CI: 1.01-1.30), adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and comorbidities. Among participants with a telehealth visit in the past year, the primary reasons for their most recent visit were: minor/acute illness (32%), chronic disease management (21%), mental health/substance abuse (17%), and annual exam (16%). Older adults were more likely to report that the primary reason for their most recent telehealth visit was for chronic disease management (aPR: 2.20, 95% CI: 1.42-3.41), but less likely to report that it was for a mental health/substance abuse issue (aPR: 0.19, 95% CI: 0.10- 0.36), adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics.

Conclusions:

Among US adults, telehealth visit attendance was high more than a year after telemedicine expansion and did not differ by age, race/ethnicity, or income. Telehealth could continue to be leveraged following COVID-19 to improve access to care and health equity.