Telemedicine exploded at the start of the pandemic, for all the obvious reasons. Doctor visits went virtual and lots of companies, including Walmart, started going all-in on telehealth.
But usage has slowed and remained flat over the last year as some patients go back to in-person appointments. Some waivers that allowed physicians to practice across state lines have expired too.
So is telehealth at a crossroads?
Not exactly, said Dr. Aditi Joshi, who has been in the telehealth industry for more than a decade and is the chair of the telehealth committee for the American College of Emergency Physicians. She said while there will be some aspects of virtual health care that may go away in the short term, telehealth is still here to stay.
“I see it as just part of our health care in the future. We’re having this conversation about telemedicine, but in 10 years, we’re not going to say this is a telemedicine visit or an in-person visit. It’s just ‘I saw my doctor.’ It’s going to be just a normal part of our everyday care,” she said.
On the show today, Joshi makes us smart on the future of telehealth and why it’ll look less like online banking and more like the hybrid workplace.
In the Newsfix, homebuyers are flocking to … Florida? We’ll continue our ongoing conversation about the state’s housing market in the wake of Hurricane Ian.
Plus, remember The Onion’s SCOTUS brief in defense of parody? The guy who wrote it answers the Make Me Smart question.
Here’s everything we talked about today:
- “Telemedicine was made easy during COVID-19. Not any more” from The Associated Press
- “Virtual care isn’t as novel as it once was” from Politico
- “Home Buyers Flock to Florida Cities Devastated by Hurricane Ian” from The Wall Street Journal
- “A tiny Florida beach town is rebuilding after a hurricane. Is it becoming a preserve of the rich?” from The Los Angeles Times
- “Trump charged Secret Service ‘exorbitant’ hotel rates, records show” from The Washington Post
- “Biden to ask Congress to codify Roe v. Wade abortion rights protections if Democrats keep control” from CNBC
- Listen: “Spotlight on virtual mental health care” from “Call to Mind”
There’s still time to submit your questions for Whaddya Wanna Know Wednesday. Call 508-U-B-SMART and leave us a voicemail. You can also email makemesmart@marketplace.org.
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