Medicare telehealth utilization: 7 trends to know
Only 15 percent of patients who were eligible for Medicare fee-for-service telehealth used the service in the second quarter of 2022, according to a Dec. 15 telehealth utilization report from CMS.
CMS analyzed data from Medicare Fee-for-Service Part B claims data and Medicare enrollment information for beneficiaries who utilized telehealth services between January 1, 2020, and June 30, 2022.
Seven trends CMS observed about Medicare telehealth usage:
- Out of 22,683,405 patients who were eligible for Medicare fee-for-service telehealth utilization in the second quarter of 2022, 3,369,035 patients, or 15 percent, actually used it.
- The highest rate of telehealth usage was in the second quarter of 2020, when 47 percent of eligible beneficiaries used it.
- Hispanic Medicare users were more likely than other race/ethnicity groups to use a telehealth service in the second quarter of 2022.
- Dual Medicare and Medicaid users were more likely to use a telehealth service in the second quarter of 2022, compared to Medicare-only beneficiaries.
- Women were more likely than men to use a telehealth service in the second quarter of 2022.
- People 64 and younger were most likely to use a telehealth service in the second quarter of 2022.
- Urban Medicaid users were more likely than rural beneficiaries to use a telehealth service in the second quarter of 2022.