IHPI POLICY IMPACT SNAPSHOT

Telehealth and the New Era of

U.S. Healthcare

Telehealth remains a convenient option for patients following the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to account for about 10% of all medical appointments in the U.S. Chad Ellimoottil, M.D., M.S., associate professor of urology, works to understand telehealth’s changing role in U.S. healthcare. As Medical Director of Telehealth for Michigan Medicine, which conducts over 450,000 virtual care visits annually, Ellimoottil explores the barriers, benefits, and limitations of telemedicine. 

Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare

With electronic health records now becoming the norm, the U.S. has experienced a surge in data availability, enabling faster decision-making in healthcare. This raises important questions and opportunities for the role of artificial intelligence (AI) in the field. How can this technology be leveraged effectively and responsibly?

This new video series highlights how IHPI researchers are exploring and shaping the many facets of AI application in health and healthcare.

Bohnert and Lin receive PECASE awards

Two new studies look at how health insurance coverage changes affected older adults

The new studies published in JAMA Health Forum and led by Renuka Tipirneni, M.D., M.S., associate professor of internal medicine, looked at people who turned 65 in the time since the Affordable Care Act’s insurance provisions took effect in 2014. One study showed lower out-of-pocket health costs and fewer hospitalizations as individuals aged into Medicare eligibility. The other study showed that half of people who are both old enough for Medicare and have incomes low enough to qualify for Medicaid did not know that they had to renew their Medicaid coverage every year. 

People find pathology reports hard to understand, increasing overall worry

In a new JAMA research letter, Cathryn J. Lapedis, M.D., M.P.H., assistant professor of pathology, and colleagues, tested whether people could understand standard pathology reports and if a patient-centered version would improve comprehension. They found many patients could not extract basic information from standard reports, but 93% of those who received the patient-centered report correctly identified a simulated diagnosis. The study was supported by IHPI and the Sandy-Hassmiller Early Career Health Services Research Award.

Lapedis

NATIONAL POLL ON HEALTHY AGING

The Value of Friendships as We Age

New results from the National Poll on Healthy Aging emphasize the key role that friends play in the lives and well being of adults aged 50 and older. In all, 90% of people aged 50 and older say they have at least one close friend, and 75% say they have enough close friends.