Does Telehealth Actually Help Patients With Chronic…

Does Telehealth Actually Help Patients With Chronic Conditions? A Large Study Finds a Mixed Answer Telehealth expanded rapidly during the pandemic, and many assumed it would help patients with chronic conditions stay connected to care. A large new study published in npj Digital Medicine puts that assumption to the test, with results that are genuinely more nuanced than a simple yes or no. Researchers analysed data from 383,570 Medicare patient quarters, comparing outcomes at primary care practices with high telehealth adoption against those with low adoption, before and after the onset of the pandemic. This design allowed them to isolate the effect of telehealth itself, rather than simply observing outcomes that may have changed for other reasons during this period. Continuity of care improved. Practices with high telehealth use saw a meaningful increase in care continuity, meaning patients were more likely to keep seeing the same provider cons