Tammy Chang, MD, MPH, MS, associate professor of Family Medicine, has been selected to receive Policy Sprint funding from U-M's Institute for Healthcare Policy & Innovation. Her project is among three healthcare projects that were selected for funding.
Each of the teams will receive up to $15,000 in funding, as well as guidance from IHPI policy engagement and communications staff.
The projects launch in September 2024 and will conclude within six months. At the conclusion of their project, each team will produce a policy-relevant deliverable, such as an IHPI policy brief, video, commentary, or prominent blog post, to summarize their research findings and related policy considerations. IHPI staff will then help each team develop a strategy to engage with key policy audiences around their work.
Chang's project is titled, "Characterizing Cost-Sharing for Patient Portal Messages in Older Adults." She will lead this project with Terrence Liu, M.D., M.S., IHPI National Clinician Scholar in the Department of Internal Medicine. Team members include Erin Isenberg, M.D., M.S., IHPI National Clinician Scholar, Chad Ellimoottil, M.D., M.S., of the Department of Urology, and Jeff Kullgren, M.D., M.S., M.P.H., of the Department of Internal Medicine.
Team members note that patient portal messaging allows individuals to communicate directly with their healthcare providers, offering a flexible way of receiving medical advice after and in between visits. This digital health technology has the potential to increase access to care, especially among certain groups, such as older adults who may face barriers to receiving care but often require more healthcare services due to multiple chronic conditions.
Beginning in 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services introduced policies that allow clinicians to bill for complex portal messages that require clinician time for medical decision-making. Little is known about patient experiences with cost-sharing, and determining potential out-of-pocket costs can be challenging. Using data from the University of Michigan National Poll on Healthy Aging, Chang and her team members will explore older adults’ experiences with patient portal messages to better understand billing and inform policies that promote the equitable use of this digital health technology.
To read more about the other two projects that received IHPI Policy Sprint funding, see the original story here.
ALSO READ a related story from Family Medicine researcher Katherine J. Gold, MD, MSW, MS, about patient portal messages:
Patients deem the online portal an essential part of primary care
