Some patients back to ... phones
‘If this bug ever passed my way ... I’m dead’
NEW YORK, June 27, (AP): Video telemedicine took off earlier this year as the coronavirus paused in-person doctor visits. Earl Egner missed that trend.
The 84-year-old diabetic and cancer survivor has no computer or cellphone. Instead, he relies on a form of communication older than himself – the telephone – to talk to doctors as he stays hunkered down in his Somerset, Virginia, home.
“We don’t even have people come out to the house because I have underlying conditions,” Egner said. “If this bug ever passed my way, I’m a dead man, and I’m going to try to be as careful as possible.”
The pandemic pushed the US healthcare system to embrace video visits, with health insurers waiving fees for telemedicine, doctors moving their practices online and the federal government expanding access. But a portion of the US population continues to rely on audioonly telephone calls for care, even as doctors’ offices begin to reopen.
Doctors say they are performing more care than ever by phone, and higher reimbursements for these appointments makes it feasible for them to do so. But physicians also see phone calls as a last resort, and some nonprofits are trying to get more video-capable smartphones or tablets in the hands of patients who need them.
“Telephone-only visits are better than no visit,” said Egner’s physician, Dr William Fox. “But a lot of helpful information can be gleaned from eyeballing the patient, even if it is via computer monitor.”
The Charlottesville, Virginia, doctor said he had about two audio-only telephone appointments each day with patients at the height of the pandemic shutdown.
Smartphones, tablets or computers paired with a fast internet hookup are essential for a good video connection with a physician. Researchers and doctors say older and poorer patients often lack this technology, though it’s hard to pin down exact numbers.
The Federal Communications Commission estimates that about 21 million people do not have broadband access to the internet, but experts have said that figure is most likely an undercount.
The Pew Research Center found last year that about eight out of 10 American adults own a smartphone. But the figure drops to about five out of 10 for those over age 65.
Such statistics worry advocates who fear people may miss crucial care because they don’t have the equipment or the connectivity. After the new coronavirus started spreading earlier this year, the federal government’s Medicare program raised the payment for audio-only visits with doctors to be on par with in-person visits. That pushed the reimbursement range from about $14 to $41 per visit up to $46 to $110.