Thirty-seven percent of adults used telemedicine in 2021

In 2021, 37.0 percent of adults used telemedicine in the past 12 months, with use varying by age, sex, and race/ethnicity, according to an October data brief published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Health Statistics.

Jacqueline W. Lucas, M.P.H., and Maria A. Villarroel, Ph.D., from the National Center for Health Statistics in Hyattsville, Maryland, used data from the 2021 National Health Interview Survey to describe the percentage of adults who used telemedicine in the past 12 months.

The researchers found that 37.0 percent of adults used telemedicine in the past 12 months in 2021. There was an increase seen in telemedicine use with age, and use was higher for women than men (42.0 versus 31.7 percent). The likelihood of using telemedicine was increased for non-Hispanic White and non-Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native adults compared with Hispanic, non-Hispanic Black, and non-Hispanic Asian adults (39.2 and 40.6 percent, respectively, versus 32.8, 33.1, and 33.0 percent, respectively). The percentage of adults who used telemedicine increased as education level increased; variation was seen by family income. By region, the percentage of adults who used telemedicine varied, and a decrease was seen with decreasing urbanization level.

"Differences in telemedicine use were observed by sex, age, race and Hispanic origin, family income, education level, region, and urbanicity," the authors write.

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