Virtual Visits: Friend or Foe? Technology-enabled healthcare is here to stay, and growing. No question that telehealth visits, remote patient monitoring, point-of-care testing is the start of a much larger—and rapidly growing—area of development. And while many are bullish on the vast benefits of digital care including reaching people who can’t access healthcare or where healthcare is scarce, or in conflict zones, it turns out to have very real limitations. Not surprisingly gaps in equity and access show-up even in this ‘virtual’ healthcare model too. (Gaps access and equity are well documented in ‘the real-world’ of health care.) According to researchers at UCSF, virtual visits require patients to have the knowledge and capacity to get online, operate and troubleshoot audiovisual equipment and it requires internet service and cell phones or other devices. But more than a third of adults over age 65 face potential difficulties seeing their doctor via telemedicine, with the greatest challenges experienced by older, low-income men in remote or rural areas, especially those with disabilities or poor health. Buyer beware... Selected Excerpt: “Telemedicine is not inherently accessible, and mandating its use leaves many older adults without access to their medical care.” …see more