In March 2022, Telehealth Utilization Fell Nationally for Second Straight Month

Social Worker Remained the Top Telehealth Specialty Two Months in a Row Nationally and in All Regions, according to FAIR Health's Monthly Telehealth Regional Tracker

NEW YORK, June 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- In March 2022, telehealth utilization, as measured by telehealth's share of all medical claim lines, fell nationally for the second straight month, according to FAIR Health's Monthly Telehealth Regional Tracker.¹ Following a drop of 9.3 percent in February, telehealth utilization decreased 6.1 percent in March, declining from 4.9 percent of all medical claim lines in February to 4.6 percent in March. Telehealth utilization also decreased in February in every US census region (Midwest, Northeast, South and West), with the greatest decrease (8.1 percent) in the South, followed closely by the West (7.8 percent). The data represent the privately insured population, including Medicare Advantage and excluding Medicare Fee-for-Service and Medicaid.

The drop in telehealth utilization was likely due to continuing reduction in the reported number and severity of COVID-19 infections, which may have led more patients to return to in-person healthcare services. Data published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that the number of reported cases of COVID-19 continued to fall in March.

The rankings of the top five telehealth diagnoses did not change nationally in March 2022, but there were some changes at the regional level. In the Northeast, acute respiratory diseases and infections rose from fifth place to second place in the rankings. In the South, encounter for examination fell off the list and urinary tract infections rejoined the list (in fifth place) for the first time since December 2021. In all regions and nationally, mental health conditions remained the top-ranking telehealth diagnosis.

The rankings of the top five telehealth specialties did not change nationally or in most regions in March 2022. But in the Midwest, psychiatrist and primary care nonphysician switched places, with the former rising to fourth place in March and the latter dropping to fifth place. In all regions and nationally, for the second month in a row, social worker remained the top-ranking telehealth specialty.

In March 2022, the rankings of the top five telehealth procedure codes did not change nationally or in any region. The number one telehealth procedure code nationally and in every region remained CPT^®2 90837, one-hour psychotherapy.

For March 2022, the Telehealth Cost Corner spotlighted the cost of CPT 97803, therapy procedure reassessment for nutrition management, each 15 minutes. Nationally, the median charge amount for this service when rendered via telehealth was $49.97, and the median allowed amount was $31.58.³

Launched in May 2020 as a free service, the Monthly Telehealth Regional Tracker uses FAIR Health data to track how telehealth is evolving from month to month. An interactive map of the four US census regions allows the user to view an infographic on telehealth in a specific month in the nation as a whole or in individual regions. Each infographic shows month-to-month changes in telehealth's percentage of medical claim lines, as well as that month's top five telehealth procedure codes, diagnoses and specialties. Additionally, in the Telehealth Cost Corner, a specific telehealth procedure code is featured, with its median charge amount and median allowed amount.

FAIR Health President Robin Gelburd stated: "As the COVID-19 pandemic and telehealth utilization continue to evolve, FAIR Health's Monthly Telehealth Regional Tracker serves as a window into that evolution. This is one of the many ways we pursue our healthcare transparency mission."

On Wednesday, June 22, from 2 to 3 pm ET, Ms. Gelburd will host a webinar entitled "Telehealth Utilization Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Two-Year Retrospective," which will provide insights on telehealth's evolution since winter 2020 using FAIR Health's comprehensive collection of telehealth data. Click here to register for the free, one-hour webinar.

For the Monthly Telehealth Regional Tracker, click here.

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FAIR Health is a national, independent nonprofit organization that qualifies as a public charity under section 501(c)(3) of the federal tax code. It is dedicated to bringing transparency to healthcare costs and health insurance information through data products, consumer resources and health systems research support. FAIR Health possesses the nation's largest collection of private healthcare claims data, which includes over 36 billion claim records and is growing at a rate of over 2 billion claim records a year. FAIR Health licenses its privately billed data and data products—including benchmark modules, data visualizations, custom analytics and market indices—to commercial insurers and self-insurers, employers, providers, hospitals and healthcare systems, government agencies, researchers and others. Certified by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as a national Qualified Entity, FAIR Health also receives data representing the experience of all individuals enrolled in traditional Medicare Parts A, B and D; FAIR Health includes among the private claims data in its database, data on Medicare Advantage enrollees. FAIR Health can produce insightful analytic reports and data products based on combined Medicare and commercial claims data for government, providers, payors and other authorized users. FAIR Health's systems for processing and storing protected health information have earned HITRUST CSF certification and achieved AICPA SOC 2 compliance by meeting the rigorous data security requirements of these standards. As a testament to the reliability and objectivity of FAIR Health data, the data have been incorporated in statutes and regulations around the country and designated as the official, neutral data source for a variety of state health programs, including workers' compensation and personal injury protection (PIP) programs. FAIR Health data serve as an official reference point in support of certain state balance billing laws that protect consumers against bills for surprise out-of-network and emergency services. FAIR Health also uses its database to power a free consumer website available in English and Spanish, which enables consumers to estimate and plan for their healthcare expenditures and offers a rich educational platform on health insurance. An English/Spanish mobile app offers the same educational platform in a concise format and links to the cost estimation tools. The website has been honored by the White House Summit on Smart Disclosure, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), URAC, the eHealthcare Leadership Awards, appPicker, Employee Benefit News and Kiplinger's Personal Finance. FAIR Health also is named a top resource for patients in Dr. Marty Makary's book The Price We Pay: What Broke American Health Care—and How to Fix It and Dr. Elisabeth Rosenthal's book An American Sickness: How Healthcare Became Big Business and How You Can Take It Back. For more information on FAIR Health, visit fairhealth.org.

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¹ A claim line is an individual service or procedure listed on an insurance claim.
² CPT © 2021 American Medical Association (AMA). All rights reserved.
³ A charge amount is the provider's undiscounted fee, which a patient may have to pay when the patient is uninsured, or when the patient chooses to go to a provider who does not belong to the patient's plan's network. An allowed amount is the total fee paid to the provider under an insurance plan. It includes the amount that the health plan pays and the part the patient pays under the plan's in-network cost-sharing provisions (e.g., copay or coinsurance if the patient has met the deductible).

SOURCE FAIR Health