ArticleMedical care2021
Disparities in Audio-only Telemedicine Use Among Medicare Beneficiaries During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic.
Article in Medical care, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed, 49 citations in OpenAlex.
- Downstream Healthcare Use Associated with Primary Care In-Person and Telemedicine Visits in 2022.Journal of general internal medicine · 2026Article
- The role of patient, clinician, and neighborhood characteristics in predicting telemedicine engagement and modality in primary care: a cross-sectional analysis.BMC primary care · 2025Article
- Uptake of video telehealth in general practice: an Australian whole-of-population analysis.BJGP open · 2025Article
- Video and Telephone Telehealth Use and Web-Based Patient Portal Activation Among Rural-Dwelling Patients: Retrospective Medical Record Review and Policy Implications.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Remote Physiologic Monitoring Use Among Medicare Patients: Differences By Race, Ethnicity.Health affairs (Project Hope) · 2025Article
- Telehealth Visits in Health Centers Serving Low-Income Patients in California: Final Results from the Connected Care Accelerator Initiative (2022-2024).Rand health quarterly · 2025Article
- Examining the affordable connectivity program and telehealth use: a pilot survey of the affordable connectivity program, telehealth, video and audio visits in a racially diverse, lower-income population.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Adolescent mental health utilization, virtual care, and community support: evidence from 2019 to 2022.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Health Insurance Payment for Telehealth Services: Scoping Review and Narrative Synthesis.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Article
- Factors Associated with Acute Telemental Health Consultations in Older Veterans.The western journal of emergency medicine · 2024Article
- Implementing team-based telemedicine workflows in safety-net primary care.The American journal of managed care · 2024Article
- Healthcare and telehealth use among U.S. immigrants during the COVID-19 pandemic.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- Patient Perceptions of Audio-Only Versus Video Telehealth Visits: A Qualitative Study Among Patients in an Academic Medical Center Setting.Telemedicine reports · 2024Article
- Availability and use of telehealth services among patients with ADRD enrolled in traditional Medicare vs. Medicare advantage during the COVID-19 pandemic.Frontiers in public health · 2024Article
- Health Disparities, Clinical Trials, and the Digital Divide.Mayo Clinic proceedings · 2023Review
- Use of New Audio-Only Telemedicine Claim Modifiers.JAMA network open · 2023Article
- Language-Specific Challenges and Solutions for Equitable Telemedicine Implementation in the Primary Care Safety Net During COVID-19.Journal of general internal medicine · 2023Article
- Telehealth for Assessing and Managing Tardive Dyskinesia: Expert Insights from a Cross-Disciplinary Virtual Treatment Panel.Telemedicine journal and e-health : the official journal of the American Telemedicine Association · 2023Article
- Demographic Predictors of Telehealth Use for Integrated Psychological Services in Primary Care During the COVID-19 Pandemic.Journal of racial and ethnic health disparities · 2023Article
- Patient Characteristics Associated With Being Offered or Choosing Telephone vs Video Virtual Visits Among Medicare Beneficiaries.JAMA network open · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundUnder emergency coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic regulations, Medicare granted temporary payment parity with in-person visits for audio-only (telephone) telemedicine visits. This policy was designed to expand telemedicine to patients without camera-equipped devices and broadband internet. However, audio-only telemedicine use has been substantial.
objectiveThe aim of this study was to explore whether the rate of audio-only telemedicine during the pandemic is related to patient access to technology or provider behavior.
designCross-sectional analysis of the Summer and Fall 2020 Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey coronavirus disease 2019 supplements, using multivariable logistic models and accounting for complex survey design. SUBJECTS: A total of 3375 participants in the summer survey and 2633 participants in the fall 2020 were offered a telemedicine visit to replace a scheduled in-person visit by their usual care provider. MEASURES: We compared beneficiaries who were exclusively offered audio-only telemedicine to beneficiaries who were offered video telemedicine or both audio and video.
resultsWe found that among Medicare beneficiaries who were offered telemedicine to replace a scheduled in-person appointment, ~35% were exclusively offered audio-only. 65.8% of beneficiaries exclusively offered audio-only reported having a smartphone/tablet and home internet. After controlling for personal access to technology, Hispanic [adjusted odds ratio (AOR)=2.09, P<0.001], dually eligible (AOR=1.63, P=0.002), nonprimary English speaking (AOR=1.64, P<0.001), and nonmetro beneficiaries (AOR=1.71, P=0.003) were more likely to be offered audio-only during July-November 2020.
conclusionsThese findings suggest audio-only telemedicine use during the pandemic is only partially related to patient access to technology. Policymakers must work to both expand programs that provide smartphones and broadband internet to disparity communities and telemedicine infrastructure to providers.
Indexed as
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.