Telehealth Claim Lines Rise Skyrocket

Telehealth claim lines increased 2980% nationally from 0.16% of medical claim lines in September 2019 to 5.07% in September 2020, according to FAIR Health’s Monthly Telehealth Regional Tracker. Higher telehealth utilization from March to September 2020 was likely a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In March and April 2020, many states prohibited in-person elective procedures, making telehealth a viable alternative. Many of these prohibitions expired in May as states began to open up. But despite some decline from month to month, telehealth use remained high in comparison to 2019, as the pandemic continued.

Mental health conditions continued to rise in every region as a share of all telehealth diagnoses, growing nationally from 49% in August 2020 to 52% in September 2020.