America's Benefit Specialist January-February 2023

NOTEWORTHY

family member or friend, and members of the LGBTQ+ community. Rob Jekielek, managing director of The Harris Poll, said, “With the evolution of online patient portals and digital sup port tools, we have seen stronger usage among those who need to navigate the system the most—individuals with a chronic illness or disability and those who manage the healthcare needs of others. However, this has not translat ed to substantially lower frustration with the healthcare system, including understanding of coverage and claims. Confusion and uncertainty are even higher among the majority of Ameri cans who use the system sporadically, or only when specific needs arise.” Additional findings from the MITRE- Harris Poll Survey include: When consumers have a concern or question about a bill, they struggle with whom to call. Fifty-four percent of insured individuals in the United States say they don’t know whom to contact if they have an issue with a bill or claim. Individuals self-identifying as disabled or dealing with chronic illness, caregiv ers, Hispanics and younger generations are more likely to say they do know whom to contact if they have issues. The prevalence of unexpected med ical bills decreases slightly. Forty-three percent of insured Americans report receiving an unexpected bill because their insurance did not cover as much as expected—a decrease from a 2021 MITRE-Harris Poll Survey, when 47% reported a billing surprise. Patients are overwhelmingly using portals. Nearly nine in 10 insured individ uals use online patient portals more of ten for test results (70%), appointments (64%) and medical records (63%) than for other applications, such as finding a healthcare provider (58%), reviewing insurance benefits (54%), managing prescriptions (54%) or filing a health insurance claim (37%). Insured black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC) groups are more likely than white indi viduals to use patient portals to find a healthcare provider or file a claim.

challenges with health care infrastruc ture that impede accessibility. Among the one in six women who say they needed and sought mental health care services but were unable to get an appointment (16%), one-third say the main reasons they were unable to get an appointment were that they could not find a provider that was accepting new patients (33%) or that they could not afford the cost of mental health services (33%). Conducted periodically since 2001, the 2022 KFF Women’s Health Survey (WHS) includes a nationally represen tative sample of 5,145 women and 1,225 men ages 18-64 conducted primarily online from May 10 to June 7. The KFF analyses present the state of health services access and utilization among women and men by income, race and ethnicity, insurance status and other demographic characteristics. SURVEY: HALF OF PATIENTS IN THE UNITED STATES FEEL IGNORED OR DOUBTED WHEN SEEKING MEDICAL TREATMENT A new MITRE-Harris Poll Survey on Patient Experience finds 52% of indi viduals in the United States feel their symptoms are “ignored, dismissed or not believed” when seeking medical treatment. That number rises to six in 10 within the Hispanic community. The polling also revealed that more than half of blacks and Hispanics feel the “healthcare provider is biased against me based on their attitude, words or actions,” contributing to a four in 10 average across all demographics. Fifty percent (50%) of respondents also reported “a healthcare provider as suming something about me without asking me.” Additionally, the results indicate that several groups are all much more likely to experience bias, doubt or language barriers when seeking treatment. These include individuals identifying as a per son with a disability or having a chronic health condition, those responsible for managing access to healthcare for a

Patients seeking some specialists may wait two months or more for a vis it. While most Americans can schedule an imaging appointment or a visit with their primary care provider or general practitioner in less than two weeks, one in five say it can take two months or more to meet with specialized professionals such as mental health providers, specialty physicians, dentists or optometrists. This survey was conducted online within the United States, September 27-29, among 2,047 adults (ages 18 and over) by The Harris Poll. TELEHEALTH PREDICTIONS AND INSIGHTS FOR 2023 In the early years of the pandemic, telehealth emerged as a critical means to ensure access to healthcare and medical services. Almost three years later, telehealth has shifted from novel to normal, becoming a standard aspect of care delivery for most practices and hospitals. Now, a big question remains: Can the traction and promise of telehealth to increase access to care continue to extend throughout the years ahead? A new report, Telehealth in 2023, issued by national healthcare consul tancy Sage Growth Partners (SGP), un covers answers to many key questions relating to the future of telehealth. The report provides predictions, perspectives and insight to questions such as: • Has telehealth usage reached its peak, or will practices and hospitals further expand services in 2023? • What key objectives will practices and hospitals hope to achieve by of fering telehealth services in the year ahead? • How do practices and hospitals be lieve telehealth is impacting clinical outcomes—and how might that change in 2023? Continued on page 25

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