MA Primary Care Payment Models Influenced Telemedicine Usage During the Pandemic, Research Shows

AJMC July 16, 2021
Allison Inserro

Larger primary care practices in downside risk–only payment models and capitation saw the highest telemedicine utilization rates by their patients enrolled in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans.

A study published Friday in JAMA Health Forum found a significant association between the type of primary care payment model and telemedicine use during the COVID-19 pandemic for beneficiaries enrolled in Medicare Advantage (MA).

Patients used telemedicine services at the highest rates when they were in primary care groups “reimbursed under advanced value-based payment models,” according to the authors, most of whom are executives at Humana, the second-largest MA insurer in the country.

When the primary care groups were reimbursed under fee-for-service (FFS), patient telemedicine use was lower; the authors noted that those organizations...

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