Future of Telemedicine

The emergence of new technologies and the aging American population have converged to create a dynamic new industry – telemedicine. In 2024, there were 116 million users of telemedicine worldwide, up from 57 million in 2019, with similar rates of increase reported in the United States. The COVID-19 lockdowns played a major role in this trend, and although in the years since restrictions have been lifted and the number have modestly decreased, telemedicine continues to be popular.

Cheaper technologies, an increased familiarity with those technologies, and an aging population have led to more Americans choosing telemedicine, with one study showing that one-third of Americans surveyed stated that they prefer telemedicine. The move toward telemedicine presents a number of opportunities for different brands and companies, including health care companies, software developers, and other health and tech related startups. Companies that harness this trend and develop ways to use it to connect better with their patients/consumers will grow in the coming decades.

Before we discuss the current state of telemedicine and the opportunities it may present in the future, let’s define this term. The most basic definition of “telemedicine” is medical care that a patient can receive remotely through phone, email, messaging apps, video apps, or other, similar technologies. The care can involve conferencing with physicians or nurses or remote monitoring.

Some professionals consider the terms “telemedicine” and “telehealth” as interchangeable while others argue that telehealth is an umbrella term that includes services that connect providers with companies and that telemedicine is one space within the umbrella where patients remotely connect with their providers. Now that telemedicine has been defined, let’s look at the background, current situation, and future trends of this space.

The Emergence of Telemedicine 

Telehealth and telemedicine began more than 50 years ago when NASA developed a program for its astronauts. NASA doctors needed to constantly stay in touch with astronauts who were putting their bodies through entirely new processes, so phones, closed circuit, and other new technologies were utilized for tracking purposes.

The technology lagged a bit until the Mednet system was developed in the 1990s to connect healthcare providers with workers on ships. Remote devices for sleep apnea and devices that could track Alzheimer’s disease patients also became available in the ‘90s, but it was during the 2000s when telemedicine took the form of what it is today. The widespread acceptance of the internet, webcams, and instant messaging introduced telemedicine to the wider public, bringing a host of new opportunities for consumers and companies alike.

Telemedicine received a major boon when the COVID pandemic hit the world in early 2020. Telemedicine visits in the US increased by 50% in March 2020 and they accounted for 69% of all doctor visits during the peak of the pandemic in April 2020. Once the COVID lockdowns subsided by 2022, the rate of telemedicine visits had declined but the numbers were still high, indicating that patients/consumers liked the new care paradigm. A deeper dive into the numbers reveals some interesting things about telemedicine today and its potential future directions.

Telemedicine Today

Today, telemedicine is very common and is widely used for secure patient web portals, direct messaging from patients to doctors, and sending photos, images, and records between patients and medical care professionals. Telemedicine is also used extensively by health care professionals to counsel their patients in situations where a routine office visit is not needed. And studies show that health care professionals have readily accepted the telemedicine wave.

A study by the American Medical Association reveals the breakdown of health care providers by specialty who use telemedicine the most as the following: radiologists, 35%; psychiatrists, 27.8%; and cardiologists, 24.1%. On the other hand, the providers who use telemedicine the least by specialty are OBGYN, 9.3%; gastroenterologists 7.9%; and allergists/immunologists, 6.1%. The numbers indicate that there’s potential in some of these specialties and room for growth in others. Other studies relate that the growth in telemedicine has been beneficial to health care providers and consumers.

According to surveys conducted by J.D. Power and analysis by the National Committee for Quality Assurance, telemedicine has the potential to improve clinical quality by 20%, increase access to care by 20%, and reduce healthcare spending by up to 20%. Although the studies show that telemedicine is increasing in use and has many benefits for consumers, there are some drawbacks that companies and consumers should consider.

Among the biggest drawbacks of telemedicine is that consumers have to be relatively tech savvy to use it and unfortunately many who need it the most are older and far less familiar with new technologies. There are also other considerations, including potential security problems with stolen passwords and computer hacks, glitches in systems, and limited access. Not everyone who can benefit from telemedicine may have access to the requisite technology.

Future Trends in Telemedicine

Although telehealth use in general is down from its high in 2022, it’s still utilized much more than it was pre-COVID, which presents a number of opportunities for health care providers, consumers, and startups. The spaces where there may be the most opportunities are those that are currently limited.

For example, telemedicine may grow in more isolated rural areas, especially once those areas get more reliable internet in the coming years. Telemedicine may also appeal to some patients/consumers who have social anxiety issues or who have been diagnosed with socially stigmatizing diseases or afflictions, because many of these people feel more comfortable in the privacy on comfort of their own homes instead of in an office under the prying eyes of strangers.

One of telemedicine’s primary benefits for providers and consumers is its cost effectiveness, as there is less overhead for providers and fewer out-of-pocket costs for patients. As inflation continues, and will likely remain at similar levels for at least the near future, expect to see an increased number of telehealth and telemedicine programs to reduce costs and for patients to be more receptive. And as telemedicine becomes more of a business in its own right, expect to see more healthcare and other professionals take advantage of this trend.

It's likely that in the near future a number of clinics and healthcare groups dedicated entirely, or almost entirely to telehealth and telemedicine will form across the country. California based managed-care consortium, Kaiser Permanente, is leading the way in this respect by offering a 24/7 telemedicine option to its customers.

The company claims that its physicians can solve 60% of all healthcare questions via telemedicine, citing its 90% control rate of hypertension as an example. Health care consortiums that follow Kaiser Permanente’s model will be able to cut costs and focus on specialty counseling and specialty, thereby increasing the quality of the care they offer their customers.

In 2020, only 20% of doctors reported telehealth or telemedicine as a skill, but just one year later that number had ballooned to 40%. These numbers that doctors see some business potential to know this skill, which indicates that there is also potential for educators to teach these skills as well as software developers and telemedicine startups.

Perhaps the most interesting potential in the telehealth and telemedicine field involves the numerous startups that are forming every day. Because telemedicine relies on new technology to be effective, some tech startups are finding that targeting the telehealth field can be quite lucrative. For example, the city of Reno, Nevada recently created a $1.3 million experimental program where the city paid for virtual therapy sessions conducted via the smartphone app, Talkspace.

In the coming years, expect to see more app developers create apps specifically for the telemedicine field, and as telemedicine increases in popularity more of these startups will try to cash in on the trend. A legion of software developers will be needed to create telemedicine apps as well as programs that teach health care providers to use the related technologies.

The field of telehealth and telemedicine has become a major part of the healthcare field since 2020 and although the number of people who use those services has declined a bit since 2021, the numbers are still high and it shows no signs of going back to the pre-COVID numbers. Healthcare companies and related startups that understand this trend, and how it affects consumers, will be positioned to take advantage of this trend in the coming years.