Getting Telehealth-y?

This Data Bite utilizes our newly launched dataset: Earnest Healthcare – Learn more.

With much of the country stuck indoors in 2020, in-person doctor visits across many provider types were naturally replaced by virtual visits throughout the pandemic. Pre-COVID, Telehealth services made up a negligible share of total health services, but virtual visits saw quick adoption by patients in response to the continued COVID outbreak and subsequent lockdowns throughout the nation. 

Of all visits, mental health services saw the biggest move to online, with Social Work and Counselor claims spiking at around 50% and remaining around 40%, and Psychiatry claims peaking at 25% and remaining near 20%. By comparison, Nurse Practitioners, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, and Physician Assistants were less affected, peaking in the mid-to-low-teens before falling to mid single-digits. Pediatrics, General Practice, and Physical Therapy saw the least Telehealth adoption with share in the low-to-mid single-digits.

As more people get vaccinated, will we see in-person doctor visits bounce back, or is the Telehealth trend here to stay?