Interest in and Barriers to Telehealth Uptake in an Obstetric and Pediatric Medicaid Population

Telehealth has been shown to be generally well accepted by patients and physicians with an increasing desire and utilization of this practice since the COVID-19 pandemic. However, studies looking specifically at the United States’ low socioeconomic populations’ interest in and barriers to accessing Telehealth care are limited. In this study, we performed a survey to determine the interest of pediatric and obstetric patients on and the reasons they may or may not choose Telehealth visits in a practice that serves solely California Medicaid (Medi-Cal) patients. A total of 636 patients completed the questionnaire, 383 (60%) from an obstetric practice and 253 (40%) from a pediatric practice. The majority expressed that they were not interested in Telehealth (N=407, 64%), and 228 (36%) stated interest. Interest in Telehealth was related to domains of cost, access, and attitude (P<0.005 for each) for the entire sample. The highest scores (preference toward Telehealth) were noted in the domain of enjoyment; this suggests that both pediatric and obstetric patients may decline Telehealth in favor of in-person meetings simply because they like meeting with their provider. Despite readily available technology/access for Telehealth visits in low socioeconomic patients, in-person healthcare may be preferred by this patient population. In the world of changing healthcare delivery and epidemics, in-person visits are an important option for disadvantaged patients.