Press Release  NEW HPC ANALYSIS EXAMINES INCREASED ROLE OF TELEHEALTH SERVICES IN MASSACHUSETTS

BOSTON — Thursday, March 12, 2020 – Today, the Massachusetts Health Policy Commission (HPC) released a new DataPoints issue examining the use of telehealth services in Massachusetts. This analysis, the sixteenth in the DataPoints series, uses claims data on live videoconferencing between patients and providers from 2015 to 2017 to understand the growing use of telehealth services among commercially-insured patients by age, gender, service-type, diagnosis, cost as well as health plan and provider organization.

Telehealth leverages technology to connect patients to providers and providers to other providers when they are not in the same physical location. Use of telehealth services improves access to care, especially when patients face travel barriers or cannot secure a convenient appointment for an urgent – but non-life-threatening – medical issue. Telehealth can also be effective in combating infectious disease outbreaks such as coronavirus (COVID-19), as it can be employed to triage the sick and care for others remotely.

The HPC’s analysis of live video conferencing shows that the rate of telehealth utilization among commercially-insured patients in Massachusetts almost doubled between 2015 and 2017, with sharp growth occurring between 2016 and 2017. During this time period, the rate of telehealth visits grew by 98 percent, from 2 visits per 1,000 members in 2015 to 4 visits per 1,000 members in 2017. This rate of growth mirrors trends observed in a similar national study, though the rate of use in Massachusetts in 2017 was still 39 percent lower than the national rate (6.57 visits per 1,000). Given the recent government and market-led efforts to expand access to these services to patients, continued growth in utilization of telehealth services in 2018 and 2019 is likely.

“Despite the increased interest in expanding telehealth services from both policymakers and market participants and recent growth we found, Massachusetts continues to lag behind other states in the use of telehealth,” said David Seltz, HPC Executive Director. “Until this analysis, little was actually known about the utilization of these services at a population level in Massachusetts. Telehealth has huge potential to improve access to care, reduce cost, and enhance patient experience, and we will continue to recommend its expansion across the state.”

Additional key findings include:

• Commercially-insured patients who had at least one telehealth visit in 2017 were more likely to be women and younger than the overall population
• More than half of all telehealth visits were for mental health services, with generalized anxiety disorder as the most common diagnosis  
• The highest volume service delivered in 2017 as a 45-minute psychotherapy session
• The median cost of a telehealth visit was $77 and the median patient cost-sharing amount was $20
  • Cost-sharing for telehealth visits was generally quite low, with 23 percent of visits in 2017 delivered with zero cost-sharing
• Variation was widespread across the insurers and providers analyzed

In recent years, the Commonwealth has sought to expand access to telehealth services through numerous state-led efforts, and the legislature is actively considering significant reforms to build on these efforts. As stated in its newly released 2019 Annual Cost Trends Report, the HPC recommends urgent action by policy makers, health plans, and providers to increase telehealth use and availability.

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The Massachusetts Health Policy Commission (HPC), established in 2012, is an independent state agency charged with monitoring health care spending growth in Massachusetts and providing data-driven policy recommendations regarding health care delivery and payment system reform. The HPC’s mission is to advance a more transparent, accountable, and innovative health care system through independent policy leadership and innovative investment programs. Visit us at Mass.gov/HPC. Tweet us @Mass_HPC.

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