Does Telehealth Save Money? The Jury's Still Out

Although telehealth backers claim virtual consults save money, research has yet to validate this assertion, reports Politico Pro . A recent U.S. Congressional Budget Office (CBO) evaluation found telehealth coverage sometimes increases and sometimes lowers spending for private payers, although "the effects on spending tend to be small." Susan Pantely with the American Academy of Actuaries' Telehealth Work Group said insurers' willingness to cover telehealth reflects their view of "do they want to try something or do they want to wait until it's proven?" Some studies indicate that telemedicine will lead to a hike in medical costs, while others point to a decrease. A 2017 study in Health Affairs of a California public employee benefit program contracting with Teladoc learned that spending was increasing because beneficiaries were consulting doctors about acute respiratory illnesses more than they would have had the service been unavailable — although the cost per visit was lower for telehealth than for in-person check-ups. Harvard University's Ateev Mehrotra suggested the medical specialty could cause telehealth spending to rise or fall. For example, beneficiaries hesitant to meet therapists in person may do so only via telehealth, which could influence costs.