Patient Portals Now Routine Part of Health Care

WEDNESDAY, June 24, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Online patient portal messaging more than doubled between 2020 and 2025, according to a research letter published online June 22 in the Journal of the American Medical Association.Jane J. Long, M.D., from New York University (NYU) in New York City, and colleagues analyzed national trends in patient portal messaging, telehealth and telephone encounters, and office visits, as well as differences in messaging by patient sociodemographic characteristics. Analysis included deidentified electronic health record data from 140 million Epic Cosmos patient records (2,067 hospitals and 47,100 clinics).The researchers found that from 2020 to 2025, patient-authored portal messages increased from 0.99 to 2.50 per patient per year (153 percent). Meanwhile, telephone encounters declined from 2.33 to 2.20 (−6 percent) and office visits increased from 2.37 to 2.77 per patient per year (17 percent). Clinician- and staff-authored messages increased from 4.59 to 5.70 per patient per year (24 percent), with a peak during the COVID-19 pandemic (6.86 per patient per year in 2021). Telehealth visits spiked during the COVID-19 pandemic, and by 2025 accounted for only 0.19 visits per active patient per year. Based on quarterly data, increases in patient messages were not associated with decreases in office visits, but were associated with changes in telephone encounters."Modern delivery of health care means increasingly that health care providers will have to balance their digital workload on top of their traditional clinical workload," coauthor Dorry L. Segev, M.D., Ph.D, also from NYU, said in a statement. "Clinical staff will need to be trained in mastering the tools of messaging in health care; in using AI support programs, including chatbots that can frame content to minimize its complexity; and in making the most effective use of clinician time needed for online billing and online counseling."One author disclosed financial ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)Editorial (subscription or payment may be required).Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

Patient Portals Now Routine Part of Health Care

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