Eighty percent of all respondents have used telemedicine within their lifetime and it's now the preferred channel for receiving prescriptions and care for minor illnesses, according to Rock Health's 2022 Digital Health Consumer Adoption Survey. 

The survey, which asked 8,014 U.S. adults about their experience with digital health, also found that audio-only and asynchronous telemedicine modalities have been used the most within the past year. 

The adoption of wearable devices also rose, but clinical use of those devices has yet to reach the level of direct-to-consumer numbers. And consumers' willingness to share data with digital health apps, websites and health technology companies pales in comparison to their trust in doctors and clinicians.  

The year saw greater rates of telemedicine use by groups historically underserved within healthcare, with Hispanic consumers' use of telemedicine rising to 82%, representing a 9-percentage-point increase since 2021 and the most significant growth among all racial and ethnic groups surveyed. 

The highest year-over-year increases were observed among respondents 55 years and older at 76%, up from 64% in 2021; residents in rural areas, which grew to 73% from 60%; and respondents without health insurance, up to 50% from 37%. 

Although video telemedicine use remained somewhat unchanged from 2021, increased use was noted across all other telemedicine modalities — live phone rose 12 percentage points to 57%, health app or website telemedicine use climbed 11 points to 48%, email telemedicine rose 9 points to 43% and text messaging grew 8 points to 36%.

The survey's authors noted that wearable use remained steady; however, wearable ownership among older respondents, those with lower incomes and those with lower educational attainment reached an all-time high at 21%, an increase from 18% in 2021. 

Still, healthier respondents were likelier to own wearables than those who reported poor health, and "more [needs] to be done to connect individuals to wearables that improve disease management or monitor disease progression."

Regarding sources for receiving health information, 77% of respondents said they trusted doctors and clinicians as compared to digital health apps (28%), websites (16%), health technology companies (15%) and social media groups (11%). 

However, regarding sharing their healthcare data, consumers have grown more hesitant since 2020 with only 20% open to sharing their data with research organizations, 1% with health technology companies, 14% with pharmaceutical companies, 11% with their employers, 7% with technology companies and 8% with government organizations.

"2022's Survey data suggests consumers are increasingly turning to telemedicine for low-acuity care, revisiting non-visual modalities, gradually growing their rates of wearable ownership, and rethinking their health data sharing with healthcare and non-healthcare entities," the report's authors wrote. "But with the wheels of telemedicine no longer greased by extraordinary funding and exceptional regulatory circumstances, digital health still needs more support to reach its summit. We hope this comes in the form of a continued commitment to high-quality care, strengthened telehealth and patient monitoring reimbursement pathways, and (re)fueled consumer trust."