Trends and disparities in telehealth use among Louisiana Medicaid beneficiaries with type 2 diabetes
Authors' conclusion
We found disparities in the uptake of telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic, but they might have been narrowed for some groups (Hispanic and rural) among Louisiana Medicaid beneficiaries with T2D. Future studies should explore strategies to improve access to telehealth services and reduce related disparities for the low-income population.
Study context
- Population
- Louisiana Medicaid beneficiaries with T2D, claims data January 2018 to August 2021
- Exposure
- Telehealth use by race/ethnicity, geography and age, before vs during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Outcome
- Monthly proportion of outpatient visits delivered by telehealth
- Follow-up
- January 2018 to August 2021
Methodological detailsclaims data, multivariable logistic regression
- Claims data
- Multivariable logistic regression
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Before the pandemic
< 1%
Spike in April 2020
> 15%
Thereafter, approximately
5%
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Factors associated with telehealth use during the COVID-19 pandemic
| aOR (95% CI) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Older beneficiariesOlder less likely to use telehealth | 0.874 (0.831–0.919) | |
| 0.512Adjusted odds ratio (log scale) |
| Outcome | aOR (95% CI) | |
|---|---|---|
| Factors associated with telehealth use during the COVID-19 pandemicFemalesvs Males | 1.359 (1.298–1.423) | |
| Factors associated with telehealth use during the COVID-19 pandemicBlackvs White | 1.067 (1.000–1.139) | |
| 0.512Adjusted odds ratio (log scale) |
Factors associated with telehealth use during the COVID-19 pandemic
- More telehealth use with urban residence, more primary care utilization and more chronic conditions at baseline
- Telehealth use varied across racial/ethnic groups, geography and age groups over years
Original publication
Trends and disparities in telehealth use among Louisiana Medicaid beneficiaries with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes Obes Metab. Published 20 June 2023. doi:10.
Composed by AI from the published abstract and checked against it. How Briefs are made →