The pandemic acted as a catalyst, propelling virtual care to the forefront of healthcare delivery.
Even after the pandemic subsided, virtual care persisted as an integral part of healthcare, demonstrating how technology has reshaped healthcare delivery. We’re seeing this at Elevance Health, where virtual visits increased 3% year over year with more than 800,000 virtual visits in 2023. Telehealth continues to gain traction in the market, indicating that consumers are continuing to embrace virtual healthcare.
Elevance Health commissioned a virtual healthcare study in the hopes of understanding consumers' attitudes toward virtual healthcare in a post-COVID world. With our digital-first approach, Elevance Health works to improve the healthcare journey, enhance the consumer experience and help consumers improve their health and well-being.
Through this survey research, we found a significant majority of consumers expressed optimism and satisfaction with their virtual healthcare experiences. Seventy-five percent of consumers find virtual care useful and plan to continue using it, with most (73%) indicating they would recommend virtual care services to their family and friends.
Consumer optimism and convenience with virtual care
Consumers express optimism about virtual care, finding it convenient and user-friendly. An overwhelming 90% of consumers agree that virtual care provides access for those who are unable to visit a doctor in person, and 81% believe that the healthcare system is improving with the integration of virtual care.
A vast majority of consumers express optimism and satisfaction with their virtual healthcare experiences, especially when it comes to using virtual care via telephone. Nearly 8 in 10 affiliated health plan members that leverage virtual care report they get what they need from their virtual visit with a provider. Today, consumers are most satisfied with their virtual care telephone experience (72%), followed by video (54%), texting (48%) and, lastly, in-app chat (46%).
While consumers recognize the benefits of virtual care, they have concerns about its limitations, notably the inability of a provider to conduct a physical examination. To address this, a hybrid model combining virtual care and in-person care offers patients the flexibility to access healthcare both physically and remotely. This approach enables timely interventions, reduces travel burdens and facilitates continuous monitoring and support, ultimately leading to improved health outcomes.
Managing health through virtual care
Virtual healthcare has made interactions with healthcare providers more accessible, enabling quicker access to medical advice and ongoing communication for follow-up care. Some healthcare interactions, such as prescription needs, are mostly completed virtually, with prescription renewals (71%) being the top use case for virtual visits, followed by follow-up visits (62%) and wellness visits (51%).
Telephone calls are the most popular form of virtual care, with two-way video interactions being used the least frequently. However, the survey found that behavioral health visits are most frequently conducted through video chat. At Elevance Health, we've observed that affiliated health plan members are increasingly using video visits to access behavioral health care, with 28% of all video visits dedicated to behavioral health.
Integration is key
A crucial requirement for consumers when using virtual care is integration. A majority (83%) believe that it is important for their virtual care services to be integrated with their existing healthcare providers or medical records. This emphasizes the need for a seamless and continuous healthcare experience.
With Elevance Health's digital health platform, our virtual-first health plans can connect care data from various visits and providers throughout the healthcare system. In many cases, interoperability—or the ability to exchange data—allows care data to move between virtual first providers, in-person doctors and specialists more seamlessly. This enhances the healthcare experience for consumers by reducing redundancies as consumers transition between different care settings and, when necessary, gives providers easier access to previous health information.
As most consumers feel optimistic about virtual care, find it useful and plan on continuing to use it, it's evident that consumers are embracing virtual care. Elevance Health continues to evolve daily to ensure a patient-centric approach that optimizes virtual healthcare interactions and enhances overall care outcomes.
Anil Bhatt is the global chief information officer for Elevance Health.