Page 20 - Telemedicine - Essentials of Virtual Care Delivery Part One

SVMIC Telemedicine: Essentials of Virtual Care Delivery

Patrice Harris, MD, MA, Immediate Past President of the

American Medical Association (AMA), presented testimony to
the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on the Budget

as part of its June 23, 2020, hearing on “Health and Wealth
Inequality in America: How COVID-19 Makes Clear the Need

for Change”. In her statement, Dr. Harris noted the alarming
health disparities and inequities that exist in minoritized and

marginalized communities across the United States. She
addressed the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on

minority communities … “The data that have emerged on the
racial and ethnic patterns of the COVID-19 pandemic show

that the virus has clearly disproportionately affected Black and
Latino/Latinx, American Indian/Alaska Native—particularly

in the Navajo nation—Asian-American, and Pacific Islander
communities. . .”
11

One of the primary challenges facing widespread adoption

of telemedicine is families who don’t have in-home internet
access. A Pew research survey from 2019 found that 35 million

Americans do not have adequate internet access. Additionally,
Black and Hispanic adults remain less likely than whites

to say they own a traditional computer or have high-speed
internet at home. Wide use of smartphones with broadband

cellular connections is playing a role in helping to bridge these
differences.

Roughly eight-in-ten whites (82 percent) report owning a
desktop or laptop computer, compared with 58 percent of

blacks and 57 percent of Hispanics. There are also substantial

11 https://searchlf.ama-assn.org/undefined/documentDownload?uri=%2Funstructured%2Fbinar
y%2Fletter%2FLETTERS%2F2020-6-22-Written-statement-for-Budget-C-Hearing-final.pdf

Page 20