Skip to main content

Modest Decline Seen in Portal Messaging With Billing Implementation

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on Dec 31, 2024.

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, Dec. 30, 2024 -- Implementation of e-visit billing for responding to patient-initiated messages that require substantive medical decision-making is associated with a modest decrease in patient-initiated portal message volume, according to a study published online Dec. 31 in the Annals of Internal Medicine.

Shannon M. Dunlay, M.D., from the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, and colleagues examined the effect of billing eligible patient-initiated portal messages as e-visits in a retrospective observation pre-post comparison and prospective survey. The volume of patient-initiated medical advice message threads was compared preimplementation versus postimplementation of e-visit billing. An online survey was used to assess health system provider perceptions of e-visit billing.

The researchers found that the volume of patient-initiated medical advice message threads decreased by 8.8 percent in the six months after e-visit billing implementation (Aug 18, 2023, through Feb. 18, 2024) compared with the same dates the year prior. Overall, 5,183 medical advice messages (0.3 percent) were billed. Patients who proceeded with sending a message had no difference in seven-day use of emergency services compared with those who did not send a message after viewing the billing disclaimer on the patient portal. Overall acceptance of e-visit billing was reported by providers, but they expressed concerns relating to increased workload with the current process.

"As digital health care practices continue to evolve, opportunities exist to optimize interactions to maximize patient satisfaction and outcomes and minimize care team burden and burnout," the authors write.

Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Posted December 2024

Read this next

Declining Childhood Vaccination May Increase Risk for Vaccine-Preventable Infections

WEDNESDAY, April 30, 2025 -- Declining childhood vaccination rates may increase outbreaks of eliminated vaccine-preventable infections within the United States, leading to a...

AACR: Incidence-Based Mortality Dropping for Young Women With Breast Cancer

TUESDAY, April 29, 2025 -- Incidence-based mortality (IBM) declined from 2010 to 2020 among women aged 20 to 49 years diagnosed with breast cancer, according to a study presented...

AACR: Nonsurgical Treatment Feasible for Mismatch Repair-Deficient Tumors

TUESDAY, April 29, 2025 -- A neoadjuvant programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) blockade enables nonoperative management among patients with early-stage mismatch repair-deficient (dMMR)...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.