Published in:
01-10-2019 | Care | Perspective
Evidence and Implications Behind a National Decline in Primary Care Visits
Authors:
Ishani Ganguli, MD, MPH, Thomas H. Lee, MD, MSc, Ateev Mehrotra, MD, MPH
Published in:
Journal of General Internal Medicine
|
Issue 10/2019
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Abstract
Primary care is the foundation of the health care system and the basis for new payment and delivery reforms in the USA. Yet since 2008, primary care visit rates dropped by 6–25% across a range of populations in five sources of national survey and administrative data. We hypothesize three likely mechanisms behind the decline: decreases in patients’ ability, need, or desire to seek primary care; changes in primary care practice such as greater use of teams and non-face-to-face care; and replacement of in-person primary care visits with alternatives such as specialist, retail clinic, and commercial telemedicine visits. These mechanisms require further investigation. In the meantime, the trend prompts us to optimize the primary care visit and embrace the growth of alternatives while preserving the fundamental benefits of primary care.